Gundam -- Live Action movie
by Kenny Rutter
Summary: Screenplay for a live action Gundam movie set during the present times. After her hometown is destroyed, a teenager gets involved in a world war as the pilot for the US military's prototype mobile weapon.


**GUNDAM**

**PLOT SUMMARY:**

**AFTER HER HOMETOWN IS DESTROYED, A TEENAGER GETS INVOLVED IN A WORLD WAR AS THE PILOT FOR THE U.S. MILITARY'S PROTOTYPE MOBILE WEAPON.**

**BASED ON THE ANIME FRANCHISE BY YOSHIYUKI TOMINO.**

**SCREENPLAY BY**

**KENNY RUTTER**

**ADDITIONAL STORY BY**

**CHRIS BRENNEMAN**

1

EXT. - EST. - WASHINGTON DC - HILTON HOTEL. NIGHT.

It's pouring down rain outside as a white taxi cab pulls up. Someone - who's carrying a manilla folder with him - climbs out of the taxi's back seat and hands some money to the cab driver.

WILLIS

Keep the change.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

He hurries to the main doors of the hotel.

INT. - HILTON HOTEL - LOBBY. NIGHT.

Willis tries to shake some water off of him as he heads towards the main area. He's stopped by two Secret Service agents.

AGENT #1

Whoa. Hold on there.

Willis takes out his wallet and shows his ID and security clearance to the two agents.

WILLIS

I'm Willis Drake, I work with Central Intelligence.

AGENT #2

I don't care if you're the King of Siam, you're not coming in here dressed like a street bum.

Willis looks behind them and spots someone he recognizes. He waves that someone over.

WILLIS

Teddy! Hey, Teddy!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

His friend, whose name is Ted, joins them.

TED

Willis, what on earth are you doing here? I thought you

2

were still in Switzerland skiing the Alps?

WILLIS

Listen, Ted, I need to borrow your suit jacket. At least I won't look like some hobo.

TED

Why? What's wrong?

WILLIS

I don't have time to explain, just give me your fucking jacket!

Ted reluctantly hands Willis his suit jacket. Willis starts to put it on as he pushes his way past Ted and the two Secret Service agents.

TED

And watch your language, this is a family event.

Willis isn't listening; he makes his way into the main dining hall, where some kind of ceremony - headed by Presidential Secretary Robert Beckel - is taking place.

BECKEL

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm happy to announce that tonight alone, we have raised $150 million for President Wilcox's re-election campaign.

The people in the room burst into applause and cheers, and that's when Willis makes his move.

WILLIS

Excuse me, Secretary Beckel?

Beckel turns around to face Willis.

BECKEL

Do I know you?

WILLIS

Sorry, Mr. Secretary. My name's Willis Drake, I work with the CIA.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

3

Beckel leans in close to speak to Willis in private.

BECKEL

You DO realize that this is a formal event, right? You should have at least worn a polo shirt.

(sniffs)

And some deodorant.

WILLIS

I didn't have time. Secretary Beckel, I have something urgent to show you.

BECKEL

It's always urgent. Tell you what, put it on my desk and I'll look it over next Tuesday.

WILLIS

We may not have until next Tuesday.

BECKEL

Fine, I'll look at it in the next couple of days, how about that?

He pats Willis on the shoulder and turns to leave, but Willis stops him.

WILLIS

Secretary Beckel, I just got back in the country from Geneva. I haven't had any sleep, nor have I had anything to eat or drink in nearly three days. You need to see this, Mr. Secretary, and you need to see it RIGHT FUCKING NOW!

By now, everyone's just staring at him.

Back on: Beckel.

He rolls his eyes and turns back to Willis.

BECKEL

Fine, if it's that important to you.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

He takes the manilla folder Willis is holding and opens it.

4

He scans a few pages.

BECKEL

Oh my god.

(to Willis)

How reliable are your sources?

WILLIS

The best, Mr. Secretary.

Beckel takes a cell phone out of his pocket and dials a number before putting the phone to his ear.

BECKEL

Yeah, it's me. Bring the car around front, I'll meet you there.

He puts the phone back in his pocket before turning back to Willis.

BECKEL

Let's hope they got some deodorant in the car.

WILLIS

Mr. Secretary?

Beckel starts heading for the door.

BECKEL

You're about to meet the President.

He leaves. Willis is left staring after him, even when Ted joins him.

TED

What's up?

WILLIS

Nothing good, I can tell you that much.

Cut to:

INT. - UNITED NATIONS - MEETING ROOM. DAY. SEVERAL MONTHS LATER.

5

American President Oswald Wilcox steps into the room, shutting the door behind him. Also in the room are the Presidents and Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Ireland, Israel, and Germany.

President Wilcox addresses the interpreters in the room.

WILCOX

I'd like to speak to my fellow heads of state in private, please.

The Japanese Prime Minister whispers something to his interpreter.

JAPANESE INTERPRETER

Prime Minister Higurashi wishes for his interpreter to remain present, Mr. Wilcox.

WILCOX

Higurashi-sama, I assure you, your English is good enough for what I have to say.

The interpreter looks at Prime Minister Higurashi, who simply nods.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

All the interpreters and translators leave the room. After a moment, they're all gone, leaving the heads of state alone in the room.

WILCOX

My friends. Several months ago, I received information so shocking that at first, I refused to believe it. But through the concerted efforts of our most brilliant intelligence agencies, we have confirmed its validity. The nations of Russia, Iran, China, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela have broke off from the United Nations - explaining why they haven't joined us today -

He indicates the six empty seats around the round table.

WILCOX

And have formed a new union. They now call themselves "The Principality of Zeon", and in an effort to show their might

6

to the world, they have declared war on the United Nations.

Shock registers on the faces of the other heads of state.

WILCOX

So far, there have only been small isolated attacks in nations affiliated with the UN, but it's only a matter of time before these attacks become more frequent and devastating. Which is why I am asking that we authorize military action. Mobilize the NATO troops, and bring an end to this war before it gets too out of hand.

Cut to:

INT. - WHITE HOUSE - WAR ROOM. DAY. ONE MONTH LATER.

The Secretary of Defense projects a fuzzy picture on a screen. The picture shows some sort of large humanoid figure on a flatbed truck being loaded into a cargo plane.

WILCOX

What is that thing?

BARTON

Judging from reports we've intercepted from the Russians, it's some kind of mobile weapon. Mechanical, and God knows what kind of destruction that thing's capable of.

Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON. SITUATION ROOM. DAY. FOUR MONTHS LATER.

Secretary of Defense Trevor Barton is addressing some high ranking military generals.

BARTON

These mobile weapons are causing untold damage in major cities around the world. Which is why we've decided to create our own.

Cut to:

EXT. - SPACE.

A cargo shuttle is flying away from the moon.

7

BARTON (V. O.)

Even as we speak, NASA is sending a shipment of Gundaniam alloy from the moon. We've decided to use this nearly indestructible metal in the creation of our own mobile weapon.

Cut to:

EXT. - LONDON STREET. DAY.

It looks like a total war zone - most of the city's been reduced to rubble, people are scattering all over the place trying to escape the violence, and off in the distance we can hear the firing of heavy machine guns.

Even the news reporter - and the cameraman with her - is having trouble staying focused as the city practically falls apart.

BRITISH REPORTER

The Prime Minister has declared a state of emergency in the wake of this Mobile Suit attack. He's asked that London be immediately evacuated. The city hasn't seen damage to this extent since the Blitz in 1940 -

A bomb explodes nearby, vaporizing the reporter and her cameraman.

Fade out.

Fade to:

EXT. - SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - DAY.

A news report is playing on the TVs on display in the window of an electronic store.

NEWS REPORTER

Another Zeon attack in Australia leaves 17,000 dead and an additional 5,000 injured or missing. The Australian military tells us that Zaku Mobile Suits were involved in the attack and are responsible for a majority of the damage.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

8

17 year old Jasmine Pryce - a very pretty teenage girl - goes walking past; she's on her way home from school. She stops and watches the news report continue.

NEWS REPORTER

Ever since the Mobile Suits first appeared on the battlefield, they've been responsible for a majority of the battle deaths in the war between Zeon and the UN.

Jasmine shakes her head.

JASMINE

I can't even begin to imagine what those poor people are going through.

A couple of her friends, Keith and Fran, join up with her.

KEITH

Hey, Jasmine.

JASMINE

Huh? Oh, hi you guys.

FRAN

You ready for tomorrow, Jazz?

JASMINE

What's tomorrow?

FRAN

Don't tell me you've forgotten about the pre-graduation ceremony.

JASMINE

Oh. That.

They start walking down the street.

KEITH

You okay, Jasmine? You've been out of it a bit lately.

JASMINE

Sorry, guys. Just got a lot on my mind.

KEITH

9

About what? Oh, wait, I think I know.

FRAN

The war? Relax, Jasmine, it doesn't involve us.

JASMINE

And how long do you think that will last? During World War Two, America managed to stay out of the fighting for at least two years, not counting that air squadron stationed in China.

KEITH

Yeah, but that was almost 70 years ago. What are the odds of that happening again any time soon?

JASMINE

Haven't you heard? History has a bad habit of repeating itself.

KEITH

Don't go all philosopher on us, Jasmine.

JASMINE

Sorry.

FRAN

Okay, time for a subject change. I can't believe we're finally about to graduate. You guys got plans after school?

KEITH

Don't know yet. Still thinking about that.

JASMINE

Washington State University. I've already put in an application, all I have to do now is go through financial aid and then I'm in.

FRAN

Really? What are you going to be studying?

JASMINE

Business administration. It's a three year course.

KEITH

Well, good luck, Jasmine.

10

JASMINE

Yeah. Thanks. Hey, I've got to get home. I'll see you guys tomorrow.

FRAN

Yup.

KEITH

Sure thing.

The three of them go their separate ways.

Cut to:

EXT. - PACIFIC OCEAN. DAY.

A fleet of naval ships - battleships, destroyers, and at least two aircraft carriers - are sailing the waters. On the side of one of the aircraft carriers is a gold crest, the symbol of the Principality of Zeon.

Quick cut to:

INT. - AIRCRAFT CARRIER - BRIDGE. DAY.

Now we see that this particular aircraft carrier is a Russian vessel. The captain, along with several other officers, are standing around a table, going over battle strategy.

RUSSIAN CAPTAIN

(in Russian)

Is everything ready?

RUSSIAN PILOT

(in Russian)

The preparations are complete and the invasion force is ready for insertion. Our first target on American soil is the city of Seattle.

RUSSIAN CAPTAIN

(in Russian)

That should stir them up a bit.

Cut to:

11

EXT. - AIRCRAFT CARRIER - FLIGHT DECK. DAY.

Groups of soldiers, all armed with their rifles and dressed in their battle fatigues and armor, are piling into some transport helicopters. The helicopters' rotors start spinning.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Some transport planes are also getting ready to take off. Something's being loaded into them, but we can't quite see what.

Fade to:

INT. - JASMINE'S HOUSE - JASMINE'S BEDROOM. EARLY MORNING.

The time on the clock is 5:30 in the morning. Because it's so early, Jasmine's still fast asleep.

A muffled SFX: BOOM wakes her up. She sits up and looks around.

JASMINE

What was that?

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE. EARLY MORNING.

A squadron of troop transport planes from different nations - Russia, China, and North Korea, in this case - go flying overhead. The rear hatches of the planes are open, allowing paratroopers to drop into the city.

Cut to:

INT. - BAR. EARLY MORNING.

The few patrons in the bar are watching the morning news on a TV when the picture cuts out.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

12

A grenade smashes through a window. A few seconds later, it EXPLODES.

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE. EARLY MORNING.

An attack helicopter is making a strafing run down the center of the street, blasting bystanders and vehicles alike.

OVERHEAD -

Venezuelan and Cuban bombers are flying high overhead, dropping their payloads.

Cut to:

INT. - JASMINE'S BEDROOM. EARLY MORNING.

Jasmine's now watching the events unfold from her window. She ducks down and covers her head with her hands, just as a bomb lands in the backyard.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Jasmine's mother throws the door open and hurries into the room, over to Jasmine.

JASMINE

Mom, what's going on?

MOTHER

Zeon's attacking. We have to get out of here.

She pulls Jasmine to her feet and ushers her to the door. Jasmine grabs her cell phone off her nightstand as they go.

MOTHER

Dad's getting the car ready.

Quick cut to:

EXT. - JASMINE'S HOUSE. EARLY MORNING.

13

Jasmine and her mother hurry outside, just as her dad's driving the car out of the garage. Just before the car reaches the street, a blast from an RPG hits it, destroying it.

JASMINE

Dad!

MOTHER

Jasmine, run!

They turn to run the other way. As they do, a burst of bullets hits Jasmine's mother right in the back.

JASMINE

Mom!

MOTHER

Jasmine...run.

JASMINE

But, Mom -

MOTHER

GO!

Jasmine just stares at her mother for a second, before reluctantly turning and running.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

A squad of Russian soldiers starts to follow Jasmine. Jasmine's mother grabs a soldier's leg, stopping him.

MOTHER

I - I won't -

The soldier takes out his side arm.

Quick cut to:

EXT. - BACK ALLEY. EARLY MORNING.

Jasmine's just turned into the alley when she hears a SFX: GUNSHOT, stopping her in her tracks.

14

JASMINE

Oh God. Mom.

She looks up and sees some more planes and helicopters flying overhead.

JASMINE

I - I have to hide.

She looks around for a suitable place to hide. The only place is a Dumpster. With no other choice, Jasmine lifts the lid and climbs in.

INSIDE THE DUMPSTER -

Jasmine's sitting amongst all sorts of garbage. She curls up, holding her legs against her chest, and starts crying.

Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON - SITUATION ROOM. MORNING.

Secretary of Defense Barton and a few top military advisers from different countries - America, Britain, Israel, France, and Germany - are watching a satellite feed of Seattle.

BARTON

So it's finally happened - Zeon's launched an attack on American soil. I suppose it was only a matter of time.

He turns to one of the Americans in the room.

BARTON

How long will it take to scramble the Washington State National Guard?

AMERICAN GENERAL

We can't. They're all on deployment - most of the Army National Guard's fighting Zeon forces across the globe.

Barton turns back to the satellite feed.

BARTON

So all we can do is pray.

15

ANOTER ANGLE.

He walks over to the table and SLAMS his hands down on it.

BARTON

What about Fort Lewis?

AMERICAN GENERAL

They can only send in one platoon, and odds are they'll all probably be killed as soon as they enter the city.

BARTON

But what about -

AMERICAN GENERAL

They can't find a pilot.

BRITISH GENERAL

And even if they could, it would take too long for the RX-78 to get to the battlefield in its current state. After all, it IS only a prototype.

Once again, Barton SLAMS his fists down on the table.

BARTON

God damn it!

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE. MORNING.

A few hours have passed. Jasmine's still hiding out in the Dumpster. She listens. It's quiet, almost eerily quiet. Slowly, she lifts the lid of the Dumpster a little bit.

Jasmine's POV - a few Zeon soldiers (some Russian, some Chinese, and a few Cubans) are doing their patrol. One of them turns to the Dumpster.

Back on: Jasmine.

She quickly lowers the lid and cowers again.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

16

The soldier - a Cuban - lifts the lid and aims his weapon at Jasmine. A second later, he lowers his weapon.

CUBAN SOLDIER

Looks like we got a survivor.

He grabs Jasmine and pulls her out of the Dumpster. Jasmine kicks him away and tries to make her escape, but she's blocked by the other soldiers. One of the soldiers licks his lips; it's pretty obvious what they're planning on doing to her.

Back on: Jasmine.

She tries looking for an escape, but she's trapped.

BAM! BAM! BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!

As soon as the first round is fired, Jasmine ducks down and covers her head with her hands.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The last of the Zeon soldiers falls to the ground right in front of Jasmine; like all the others, he's been shot to death.

TRAVIS (O. S.)

Looks like I got here just in time.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

An American soldier - a sergeant, judging by the insignia on his chest - is standing near the entrance of the alleyway. He lowers his rifle and makes his way over to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

You okay?

Jasmine looks up at Travis, but she doesn't answer; instead, she tries to back away.

TRAVIS

Whoa, hey, it's okay! I'm not going to hurt you.

17

He points to the NATO patch on his shoulder.

TRAVIS

I'm NATO. One of the good guys.

JASMINE

But, you - what -

Travis helps her to her feet.

TRAVIS

Are you sure you're okay, kid?

Jasmine can't help herself; she throws herself against Travis and starts sobbing loudly.

TRAVIS

I'll take that as a no.

He gently pushes Jasmine away.

TRAVIS

What's your name? I'm Sergeant Travis O'Grady. What about you?

Jasmine wipes her tears away before answering.

JASMINE

J - Jasmine. Jasmine Pryce. Are you - are you here to help?

TRAVIS

You could say that. Unfortunately, I'm the only one of my platoon left alive. At least as far as I can tell.

JASMINE

What?

TRAVIS

Long story. Don't think I have time to go into it now.

He reaches up for the radio, which is clipped to the left shoulder of his Kevlar vest.

TRAVIS

18

This is Sergeant O'Grady to Fort Lewis. Anyone copy, over?

There's no answer.

TRAVIS

Shit.

(to Jasmine)

You got a cell phone on you?

JASMINE

Why?

TRAVIS

I've gotta call my superiors back at Fort Lewis and give them an update.

Jasmine reaches into her pocket and takes out her cell phone.

JASMINE

Sorry, Travis. No signal here.

TRAVIS

Damn.

He quickly turns around and raises his rifle.

JASMINE

What's the matter?

TRAVIS

Nothing. Just thought I heard something.

He lowers his rifle and turns back to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

Come on, we gotta get out of here before any more Zeon patrols show up.

He starts to lead Jasmine out of the alley.

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE - STREET. DAY.

19

A North Korean helicopter is flying overhead on patrol. Jasmine and Travis are hiding near a shot up pickup truck.

TRAVIS

He's leaving. Come on.

He leads Jasmine away from the truck and across the street. They stop at the corner of an intersection and press their backs against the side of a building. Travis peeks out from around the corner.

TRAVIS

Clear. Let's go.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

They quickly hurry down the street and duck into some more cover - in this case, the burned-out shell of another vehicle.

JASMINE

(panting)

Why - why doesn't your radio work?

Travis looks down at his radio; he finally notices the hole blown through it.

TRAVIS

How the hell did I not notice that before? This thing's been totally shot up. How about your phone?

Jasmine takes her cell phone out and checks it.

JASMINE

Still no signal.

TRAVIS

Fan-fucking-tastic. Well, I guess the next best thing to do is find a vehicle and get the hell outta Dodge.

JASMINE

Where are your vehicles? Aren't you with the army?

TRAVIS

Yeah, but we got air-dropped in. Didn't help that our guys

20

started getting picked off right as soon as we landed.

He takes a look around; there's a Zeon patrol the next street down - they haven't noticed Travis and Jasmine yet.

TRAVIS

They're looking the other way. Come on, we gotta hurry.

They get ready to move, and that's when someone starts shooting.

TRAVIS

Scratch that, stay down!

Jasmine covers her head with her hands as Travis returns fire to the Zeon soldiers shooting at them. He takes one down.

JASMINE

Travis -

TRAVIS

Stay down, Jasmine!

He manages to take out two more Zeon soldiers. One of the Zeon soldiers left standing tosses a grenade. It lands right next to Jasmine.

JASMINE

Oh no.

TRAVIS

Fuck. Come on!

He grabs Jasmine's arm and pulls her away -

Just as the grenade EXPLODES! The shockwave of the explosion throws Travis and Jasmine to the ground.

TRAVIS

Son of a bitch!

He pulls Jasmine to her feet.

TRAVIS

21

Come on, we gotta move!

They start running. As they do, Travis turns around and fires at the Zeon soldiers. He takes down another soldier.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS, WASHINGTON - COMMAND CENTER. DAY.

American general Sherman Grant is at the radio, trying to get it to work. So far, he's having no luck.

GRANT

Come on, somebody answer. What the hell is happening out there?

He turns to one of his runners.

GRANT

See if you can't find me a short wave radio. It might be able to help us get through to our boys.

RUNNER

Yes sir.

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE - CAR LOT. DAY.

Travis is sweeping the area with his rifle. He and Jasmine are the only ones around.

TRAVIS

Clear.

He lowers his rifle and turns to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

How are you holding up?

JASMINE

Not very well.

TRAVIS

Scared, huh?

22

JASMINE

Well, yes.

TRAVIS

I hear you, kid. Just be lucky we haven't encountered any Mobile Suits.

JASMINE

Why?

TRAVIS

Ever seen a Zaku? Gouf? Dom? The Sazabi?

JASMINE

I don't even know what they are. I mean, I know they're Mobile Suits thanks to the news, but other than that -

TRAVIS

Be lucky you haven't seen a Mobile Suit. Trust me, that's one thing we don't want to see, because if we do, well, we're fucked. But from what I've seen, they don't have any Suits, so we're lucky so far. All we have to do now is find a way to Fort Lewis.

He jerks a thumb towards the cars in the lot.

TRAVIS

Let's see if we can't get one of those cars running, shall we?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Travis heads over to the first car he sees - a blue current model Ford Mustang. He tries the door; it's locked.

TRAVIS

Damn it. I'm gonna head inside and see if there are any keys for this car.

He takes out his sidearm and hands it to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

Here you go.

Jasmine just stares at the gun.

23

JASMINE

What am I supposed to do with this thing?

TRAVIS

What do you think? Use it if you have to. Just point it at someone that isn't me or anyone else you know, okay?

Jasmine reluctantly takes the gun from Travis.

JASMINE

It's so heavy.

TRAVIS

Yeah, they can be. Keep and eye out, I'll be back in a minute.

He heads towards the main office.

Back on: Jasmine.

She starts looking around, holding the gun out in front of her.

Quick cut to:

INT. - CAR LOT - OFFICE. DAY.

Travis kicks the door open and sweeps the room with his rifle. It's clear. He lowers his rifle, then heads over to the key cabinet. It's locked.

TRAVIS

Shit. Where's a fucking key when you need it?

Quick cut to:

EXT. - CAR LOT. DAY.

Jasmine's still looking around when she hears a window shatter. With a yelp -

JASMINE

(screams)

She turns around to see Travis unlocking the car door; he's

24

used the butt of his rifle to break the window.

TRAVIS

Sorry. Didn't mean to spook you.

JASMINE

You couldn't find any keys, could you?

TRAVIS

God damn cabinet was locked.

He takes out a combat knife.

TRAVIS

But maybe I can use my knife to jump-start this car.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

He climbs into the driver's seat, then reaches across and unlocks the passenger door.

TRAVIS

Go ahead and climb in.

Back on: Jasmine.

She goes around the car and climbs into the passenger seat as Travis puts his knife into the ignition. He turns the ignition; the engine turns over.

TRAVIS

Wow. I thought I'd have to hot wire the thing.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

A Zeon soldier - a Venezuelan soldier - has snuck up on them. He's gotten the jump on Travis; the Venezuelan comes at him with a knife.

TRAVIS

Oh shit! Son of a bitch!

Travis tries to hold him off. The Venezuelan soldier's actually starting to overpower him.

25

BAM! A bullet hits the Venezuelan soldier in the face, killing him instantly. He falls against Travis, who just pushes him off and onto the ground.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Travis looks over to Jasmine, who's holding the gun out in front of her and looking very shocked; the barrel of the gun is smoking - she's the one who shot the Venezuelan soldier.

TRAVIS

Nice shot.

Jasmine doesn't respond; she still looks shocked.

TRAVIS

Jasmine, it's okay.

He puts his hand on the gun and pushes it down.

TRAVIS

It's okay, honey, put the gun down.

JASMINE

I - I just - I just killed a man.

TRAVIS

I know. I hate it as much as you do, but it can't be helped. Just...

He puts a hand on her shoulder.

TRAVIS

Just let me handle it from now on, okay? Now, let's get the fuck out of here.

He shuts the driver door, puts the car in gear, and starts driving.

Fade to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY. A FEW MOMENTS LATER.

Jasmine and Travis now have a chance to relax. Travis

26

shifts gears, never taking his eyes off the road, except to glance over at Jasmine, who's just leaning back against the car seat with her eyes closed.

TRAVIS

Long day, huh?

JASMINE

Travis, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not talk about it.

TRAVIS

I hear ya, Jasmine. Not much to do about everything that's happened so far, I'm afraid.

He's quiet for a few seconds.

TRAVIS

You're still thinking about it, aren't you? Shooting that soldier?

Jasmine just nods her head.

TRAVIS

I know how you feel. You feel sick. Well, this may come off as kind of cold, but the more you do it, the more you get used to it.

Jasmine's about to say something, but she spots something in the rear view mirror. She turns around to get a better view.

JASMINE

(SCREAMS)

TRAVIS

What is it? What's wrong?

He looks through the rear view mirror, then turns to look behind them.

TRAVIS

Oh, fuck me.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

27

What they see is seven massive robotic humanoid figures - Zakus. This is the first time we've gotten to see Mobile Suits, and they're extremely impressive - and intimidating. Each Zaku is about 21 meters tall - around 63 or 64 feet; grayish-green in color, with some kind of shield on the right shoulder; the head units make it look like the Zakus are wearing some kind of gas mask, and in the center of their heads is a large red eye. Each Zaku is also armed with a massive rifle.

Back on: Travis.

He turns his attention back to the road.

TRAVIS

Jasmine, you might want to tighten your seat belt!

JASMINE

O - okay.

The Zakus OPEN FIRE. Each massive rifle is firing 80mm tank rounds. The blasts hit the road around the car. Travis maneuvers the vehicle to avoid the blasts and explosions.

Back on: Jasmine.

She ducks down as low as she can and covers her head with her hands.

JASMINE

It's a bad dream, it's a bad dream, it's a bad dream.

A blast hits less than 10 meters from the vehicle; gravel flies through the window and pelts Travis.

TRAVIS

We do not need this right now!

He tries his radio.

TRAVIS

Sergeant O'Grady to General Grant. Fuck that, anyone! Come in!

28

He's not getting anything.

TRAVIS

Fucking piece of shit radio.

More blasts hit around the vehicle. One blast is right in front of the car.

TRAVIS

Oh SHIT!

He manages to drive around the blast.

TRAVIS

Jasmine, I need to get a hold of Fort Lewis; let me use your phone!

JASMINE

O - okay.

She takes her cell phone out of her pocket and hands it to Travis. The shockwave of a nearby blast causes her to drop it.

JASMINE

No - !

Travis drives around another explosion.

TRAVIS

Jesus!

Jasmine picks the cell phone up off the floor and hands it to Travis.

TRAVIS

Thanks.

While still managing to avoid the Zakus' blasts, he dials a number and puts the phone to his ear.

TRAVIS

Hello, can you hear me? This is an emergency NATO call! I need you to patch me through to Fort Lewis, Wash -

29

A blast goes off right next to the car.

TRAVIS

Oh, FUCK!

One of the Zakus takes a second to reload its rifle before continuing the barrage.

TRAVIS

What was that about a credit card? You wanna run that by me again, asshole!

Cut to:

INT. - OPERATOR'S OFFICE. DAY.

The telemarketer - who looks like some young kid who's obviously been smoking some marijuana - is the one who's talking to Travis.

TELEMARKETER

Okay, dude, we ain't gonna get nowhere if you keep screaming at me like that. You wanna calm down? This will go by a lot faster for both of us, dude.

Cut to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY.

Travis maneuvers the car around another group of explosions.

TRAVIS

I'm in the middle of a war, you fucking stoner! My God, this is fucking ridiculous.

He reaches into his pocket, takes out his wallet, and hands it to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

Jasmine, look through there and find me a credit card.

JASMINE

Um, yeah, okay.

She opens the wallet, but nearly drops it as another

30

explosion goes off.

JASMINE

Nononono!

TRAVIS

Jesus. This isn't going so well!

He manages to avoid another blast.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Jasmine hands Travis a credit card from his wallet.

JASMINE

Here.

TRAVIS

Thanks. Read me the number.

Another blast goes off, this one so close to the vehicle it actually leaves a scorch mark.

TRAVIS

What? No, I don't want a god damn premium package, just put me through to Fort Lewis, for the love of God! I got Mobile Suits on my ass!

One blast nearly flips the car over.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - COMMAND CENTER. DAY.

A phone starts ringing. One of the men in the room, an Israeli soldier, answers it.

ISRAELI SOLDIER

Fort Lewis, General Sherman Grant's office. What?

He puts the phone down and turns to General Grant.

ISRAELI SOLDIER

General Grant, we got a cellular phone call from Sergeant Travis O'Grady. It looks like he's the only one of that

31

platoon to have survived the Seattle mission.

GENERAL GRANT

What, O'Grady? Put it on speaker.

The Israeli soldier presses a button on the phone console.

GENERAL GRANT

Sergeant O'Grady, this is General Grant. Give me a sitrep.

Cut to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY.

Travis swerves to avoid another Zaku blast.

TRAVIS

Everyone in the platoon is dead. Seattle is abandoned, everyone dead or evacuated. The only survivors are myself and one female civilian, age approximately 17 to 19, heading east on the Interstate in a blue Ford Mustang, current model, and we're being shot at by Zakus!

INT. - COMMAND CENTER. DAY.

Shock registers on everyone's faces.

GENERAL GRANT

Did he just say they were being fired upon by Zakus?

ISRAELI SOLDIER

That's what it sounded like.

General Grant turns to another soldier.

GENERAL GRANT

Get a hold of the flyboys down at the airfield and tell them to send out a drone. We need visual confirmation.

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY.

Jasmine peeks up out of the car window, but quickly ducks back down as a blast hits the road.

JASMINE

32

It's a bad dream, it's a bad dream, it's a bad dream.

TRAVIS

Yeah, you just keep telling yourself that.

A Predator drone goes flying overhead.

INT. - COMMAND CENTER. DAY.

A real-time image comes up on a nearby monitor - the seven Zakus firing at the vehicle.

BRITISH LIEUTENANT

Bloody hell.

GENERAL GRANT

It's a wonder they're still alive.

AMERICAN MAJOR

They need air support, General.

GENERAL GRANT

Yeah, I know. Scramble some jets!

Cut to:

EXT. - AIRFIELD. DAY.

Pilots are hurrying over to their aircraft - F-35 and A-10 fighter jets. They climb into the cockpits, activate the engines, and begin taking off.

INT. - COMMANDER CENTER. DAY.

General Grant's now on the radio, talking to the pilots.

GENERAL GRANT

We have one friendly vehicle being pursued by seven hostiles. Fire at the Zakus. Say again, take out the Mobile Suits!

Cut to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY.

33

Jasmine looks up just in time to see a few planes fly overhead.

JASMINE

Travis, please tell me those are your planes?

TRAVIS

Oh HELL YEAH!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The aircraft open fire with missiles and machine guns. The Zakus return fire. They manage to shoot down two planes, but are overwhelmed by the missiles. The torso unit of one Zaku explodes. Another Zaku has its arm blasted off by a missile. The machine gun fire and explosions from the missiles kick up a cloud of dust.

Back on: Travis.

He brings the car to a stop. He and Jasmine look behind them to see the carnage.

TRAVIS

WHOO! YEAH!

JASMINE

Travis, look!

She points at one Zaku, still standing - though it's missing its arm; it's holding its rifle in its free hand.

Back on: Travis.

He puts the phone to his ear again.

TRAVIS

General Grant, have the flyboys make one more pass. We got one Zaku still standing. Bring this motherfucker down.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

An F-35 goes flying overhead. It fires a missile.

SUPER SLO-MO: The missile flies towards the Zaku's chest.

34

Just as it's about to hit -

NORMAL SPEED: The missile hits the Zaku's chest, BLASTING a hole right through it and bringing the Mobile Suit down.

TRAVIS

Yes!

(into the phone)

General Grant, if you see the flyboys before I do, tell them I owe them some drinks. Oh, and do me one more favor, would you, General? Make sure the skies are clear; we'll be at Fort Lewis in about twenty minutes. O'Grady out.

He turns the phone off and hands it back to Jasmine, but she doesn't take it; she's just staring straight ahead - poor girl's gone completely catatonic.

Travis doesn't say anything; he just puts the car in gear and starts driving.

Cut to:

INT. - COMMAND CENTER. DAY.

General Grant hangs the phone up, then turns to a captain.

GRANT

Have a medical team on standby at the west gate. I want O'Grady and his companion checked out as soon as they arrive, then have O'Grady come see me for debrief.

CAPTAIN

Yes sir.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - WEST GATE. DAY.

The car pulls up to the gate. One of the gate guards comes out to meet Travis and Jasmine - Jasmine's still in a state of shock.

GATE GUARD

What the hell happened to your car?

35

TRAVIS

Zeon happened, that's what. Knowing this place, I'm pretty sure word's already gotten around.

GATE GUARD

Yeah, they say you barely managed to survive an attack by some Zakus.

Then he notices Jasmine.

GATE GUARD

What's wrong with the girl?

TRAVIS

She's had a bad day. I'll leave it at that.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Some military vehicles pull up. One of the vehicles is branded with a big red cross. Some soldiers - most armed with rifles; the ones without weapons are medics - get out of the vehicles.

TRAVIS

What's going on here?

He climbs out of the car.

TRAVIS

Hey fellas, what's up?

MEDIC

General Grant wants us to give you and your friend a routine checkup, Sergeant.

TRAVIS

One minute, guys.

He climbs back into the car.

TRAVIS

Jasmine. Come on, Jasmine, snap out of it.

He gently shakes Jasmine's shoulder, finally snapping her out of her stupor.

36

JASMINE

Huh? What?

TRAVIS

We made it to Fort Lewis. We're home free. Come on; the medics just want to have a little talk with us.

JASMINE

Um...Yeah, sure.

They climb out of the vehicle.

MEDIC

Okay, you two. We need you to come with us; won't take long, I promise.

Cut to:

INT. - INFIRMARY. DAY.

One medic is busy pulling some shrapnel out of Travis's arm, while another medic is giving Jasmine a checkup - right now he's checking her blood pressure.

MEDIC

Hmm.

JASMINE

What's wrong?

MEDIC

Your blood pressure seems a little high.

JASMINE

Really? Well, let me see, when was the last time I watched my entire world fall apart around me? Oh, that's right.

She SNAPS.

JASMINE

NEVER! Yes, I'm a little stressed out right now!

She calms down.

JASMINE

37

I'm sorry. That's not like me at all.

MEDIC

Relax. I completely understand. Your story's not all that dissimilar from others I've heard.

OVER TO - TRAVIS.

He winces as the medic tending to him pulls a piece of gravel out of his arm.

TRAVIS

Ouch. It's always the little things that hurt.

MEDIC

Considering how much shrapnel and gravel's in your arm, I'm surprised it hasn't been turned into a chunk of hamburger.

He pulls out another piece of shrapnel, causing Travis to wince again.

TRAVIS

Ow! Jesus, man, take it easy on me.

MEDIC

Hey, I gotta get out as much of the shrapnel as I can. Besides, General Grant wants to see you when I'm done with you, so I gotta make sure you look good.

TRAVIS

General Grant wants to see me?

MEDIC

Well, you ARE the only one of your platoon to survive.

Travis doesn't say anything for a second.

TRAVIS

I'm sorry.

MEDIC

About what?

TRAVIS

Everyone who died. I know a few of them were friends of

38

yours. They were my friends too.

He pulls his arm away from the medic.

MEDIC

Hey, I'm not done with you yet.

TRAVIS

It's good enough.

He puts on his fatigues jacket.

TRAVIS

I take it General Grant's in his office?

He starts to leave, but stops and turns towards the medics.

TRAVIS

Are you guys finished with Jasmine?

MEDIC

Yeah, we're done.

TRAVIS

Good, because I think maybe she'd better come along to speak with General Grant.

JASMINE

Yeah. Sure.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - DIVISION HEADQUARTERS. DAY.

Travis and Jasmine are on their way to General Grant's office when they pass by two solders in the hallway.

SOLDIER #1

Hey Sergeant O'Grady, where'd you pick up a cutie like her?

SOLDIER #2

She's just my type, Travis.

Travis angrily turns towards them.

39

TRAVIS

Both of you, shut up. Now.

SOLDER #2

Whoa, calm down, Sergeant O'Grady. You're never this testy.

TRAVIS

If you had the kind of day Jasmine and I have just had, you'd understand.

He puts an arm around Jasmine's shoulder and ushers her down the hall.

TRAVIS

Come on, Jasmine. Just ignore these two idiots.

Cut to:

INT. - GENERAL GRANT'S OFFICE. DAY.

General Grant's sitting at his desk, checking something on his computer. There's a knock at the door.

GRANT

Enter.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The door opens, and Travis and Jasmine enter the room. Travis instantly goes to attention and snaps a salute.

TRAVIS

You wanted to speak with me, General Grant?

GRANT

Yes I did, Travis. You can relax, this isn't formal or anything.

Travis relaxes and puts a hand on Jasmine's shoulder.

TRAVIS

I hope you don't mind, General, but I figured it'd be a good idea to bring Jasmine along.

GRANT

40

That's fine, Sergeant. Why don't you two take a seat, you look like you've had one hell of a day.

TRAVIS

You don't know the half of it, sir.

He and Jasmine sit in the seats across from Grant's desk.

JASMINE

Why?

GRANT

Sorry? Why what, dear?

JASMINE

Why did it happen? Why did they attack?

GRANT

You must be referring to Zeon. I wish I could answer your questions, I really do, but nothing I can say would ease your mind.

TRAVIS

If you ask me, General, I'd say Jasmine went through something even worse than me. Yes, everyone in my platoon was killed, but for Jasmine, well -

JASMINE

Travis, please don't.

TRAVIS

Yeah. Sorry.

GRANT

I'm sorry, too. I know it's not much, Jasmine, but at least accept my condolences for everything that's happened to you today. On the bright side, you both managed to survive an encounter with Zeon Mobile Suits.

TRAVIS

We got lucky, General. Planes and tanks have trouble with just one Zaku, and God forbid it was the Black Tri-Stars or the Red Comet. But a few planes taking down seven Zakus, I'd say we got somebody watching over us.

41

GRANT

It was an act of God, I'll agree with you on that. Only a few soldiers have had an encounter with a Mobile Suit and lived to tell the tale.

JASMINE

I can see why. Those...monsters.

General Grant's about to say something, but he quickly shuts his mouth before turning to Travis.

GRANT

What exactly happened? You know, before you met Jasmine and had your encounter with the Mobile Suits?

TRAVIS

The mission was FUBAR'd as soon as we dropped into the city. Japanese Captain Yoshiyuki Tomino was the first to get it, and in the firefight that followed I ended up getting separated from the rest of the group, along with Private First Class Andrew Ray from Britain. He ended up taking a Zeon bullet in the head, and by the time I found the rest of the platoon, they were all dead. A little while after that, I saved Jasmine from a few Zeon soldiers, and I'm sure you can figure out the rest. Of course, well...You know what, I'm not even gonna say it. If it's all the same to you, General Grant, I just want to take a bath and get some sleep.

GRANT

I'm sure.

(to Jasmine)

I'll see what we can do about arranging a room for you, and maybe some decent wardrobe. At least you won't be walking around the base in your pajamas.

That actually brings a small smile to Jasmine's face.

JASMINE

Thank you, General Grant.

TRAVIS

Look at that, she actually smiles.

Cut to:

42

EXT. - SEATTLE. EVENING.

A news helicopter is flying overhead. Down below in the city, the Zeon forces have made camp, pitching tents and throwing tarps over their Mobile Suits.

One Zeon soldier, a Russian - Char Aznable - looks up at the helicopter as it flies past. A North Korean soldier - Ki-Lan Yeoh, a member of the Black Tri-Stars - joins him.

KI-LAN

Media choppers.

CHAR

Word must have spread about what happened here.

KI-LAN

You want somebody to shoot it down, Commander Aznable?

CHAR

No. It was inevitable that the media would hear about what happened in this city. And I know that the Zeon presidents would want the rest of America to know that not even the so-called "Land of the Free" is safe from war.

He starts heading for one of the tents.

CHAR

We'd better get some rest while we can, Ki-Lan. The generals want us to take Fort Lewis tomorrow, as it's the closest military installation to us.

He heads inside the tent.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - BARRACKS - HALLWAY. EVENING.

A soldier leads Jasmine - who's now carrying a duffel bag - to a room. He puts the key in the lock.

SOLDIER

Well, here we are. It ain't the Hilton.

He opens the door and shows Jasmine inside. Other than the

43

wooden desk and the bed, the room's totally barren.

SOLDIER

Let's face it, you're better off staying at the Hilton.

JASMINE

It's fine. Thanks.

SOLDIER

Sure. Oh, and the outfits - ACUs aren't exactly the most comfortable thing to wear, but at least it's something.

Jasmine doesn't say anything; instead, she just steps into the room.

SOLDIER

Hey.

Jasmine stops and turns back to him; he hands her the key.

SOLDIER

You're gonna need that to get back in if you ever leave.

JASMINE

Okay. Thanks again.

The soldier just waves at her as he leaves. Jasmine shuts the door, before turning around and leaning up against it.

JASMINE

How the hell did I get into this mess? One minute I'm getting ready to graduate high school and go off to college, the next I'm watching Seattle fall apart around me and I'm stuck here.

She drops her duffel bag and opens it. Inside are a few sets of Army uniforms.

JASMINE

Might as well get cleaned up.

Cut to:

INT. - BARRACKS ROOM - BATHROOM. EVENING.

44

Jasmine's standing under the shower water; she's not doing anything, just letting the water wash over her.

Cut to:

INT. - BARRACKS ROOM - MAIN LIVING AREA. NIGHT.

Jasmine's now dressed and sitting on the bed. She hugs her legs to her chest and buries her face in her knees as she starts crying; it's like the events of the day have finally caught up to her.

Cut to:

INT. - GENERAL GRANT'S OFFICE. NIGHT.

General Grant's still sitting at his desk, but instead of messing on his computer, he's watching the nightly news. Video footage of the now destroyed Seattle is playing.

NEWS ANCHOR

We just got these images of the destruction of Seattle from our affiliates out in Spokane. From what we can tell, Zeon forces have completely decimated the city.

The image on the TV is now back in the newsroom.

NEWS ANCHOR

It may take some time for emergency crews to get into the city, but at the moment, the death toll in Seattle is expected to be close to 50,000, though that number could be subject to change.

GRANT

I still don't believe it. They actually brought the war to America.

NEWS ANCHOR

This just in - it appears that Seattle isn't the only city Zeon forces have taken in at least the last twenty-four hours. Sources tell us that Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston, Minneapolis, Miami, Philadelphia, and Dover have also fallen to Zeon attacks, and it seems that Mobile Suits have been involved in all cases.

45

General Grant clenches a fist and SLAMS his hand down on his desk.

GRANT

Why'd they even start this fucking war?

Cut to:

INT. - CIA HEADQUARTERS - LANGLEY, VA - BRIEFING ROOM. NIGHT.

Willis is among the people in the room, who also include several CIA operatives and CIA director Noah Hathaway.

NOAH

Gentlemen, we just got word of Zeon attacks on American soil that began this morning at around 0600. The cities of Seattle, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston, Minneapolis, Miami, Philadelphia, and Dover have all been attacked.

WILLIS

We should have seen this coming months ago when this war started.

NOAH

Actually, I think we did.

That catches Willis and some of the other operatives in the room by surprise.

WILLIS

What are you talking about, Director Hathaway?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Noah presses a button on a remote control. A projector turns on, projecting the image of an email on a white screen.

NOAH

It was just after Zeon was formed that we intercepted these emails detailing planned attacks on American cities. The ones I named already were among them, as are New York and DC.

46

WILLIS

And you're just showing this to us now?

NOAH

At the time we didn't have any reason to believe that they would actually launch attacks against our nation.

Willis facepalms; it's clear he's a little disgusted.

WILLIS

Noah, you were in the military, right?

NOAH

Twenty years in the Navy.

WILLIS

Then you should know better than anyone in this room that if it seems like an enemy might attack, then then they probably WILL attack.

NOAH

At the time we intercepted these emails, we didn't have any credible evidence that they would follow through with these plans.

WILLIS

Well, you've got hard evidence now! Noah, several American cities are lying in ruins, and the deaths are numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Before long that number's gonna reach into the millions, and it certainly doesn't help that a majority of our military is overseas with the other NATO forces. You should have given this information to the Pentagon as soon as you got it, but instead, you held onto it, and condemned millions of people to death!

Noah takes a few steps closer to Willis.

NOAH

Given that you're the guy who brought Zeon to our attention in the first place, Willis, I'm going to pretend that you're not using that tone of voice with the CIA director.

WILLIS

But you know I'm right.

47

Noah's about to say something, but shuts his mouth.

NOAH

Maybe. But it doesn't matter now. Zeon's already here, along with their Mobile Suits.

WILLIS

It matters to the people who are still alive.

He turns to leave the room.

NOAH

Where are you going, Willis? This briefing isn't finished yet.

Willis stops as he reaches the door.

WILLIS

You're taking everything that's happened so lightly. I figured that after two decades in the military you wouldn't want to see any more fighting. But you didn't bother to warn the military and left thousands of innocent people to die. Those weren't statistics, they were families, people who had friends, were about to go to parties, living normal lives. So I'm gonna do what you should have done in the first place, Noah. I'm heading to the Pentagon to talk with Trevor Barton.

He opens the door.

WILLIS

Oh, and um...I wonder what President Wilcox will say about this?

With that, he leaves the room.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - CAFETERIA. MORNING.

Jasmine's sitting alone at a table, slowly eating an egg omelet. Travis joins her.

TRAVIS

Morning, Jasmine.

48

JASMINE

Hi.

TRAVIS

Let me guess - rough night.

JASMINE

Yeah. I couldn't get to sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about everything - Seattle, Zeon, those giant metal monsters.

TRAVIS

I'm still amazed that we even managed to SURVIVE an encounter with Mobile Suits. You wouldn't believe just how many people this morning alone have said how lucky we are to even be alive.

Jasmine doesn't say anything, she just takes a drink of her chocolate milk.

There's a rumble that sounds like thunder off in the distance. The resulting shockwave is enough to shake the tables and light fixtures in the room.

TRAVIS

Oh God, please tell me that was just a regular tremor.

JASMINE

But we're nowhere near a fault line.

A siren starts WAILING.

TRAVIS

(groans)

Oh, Christ, we do not need this right now!

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS. MORNING.

Some Zeon paratroopers are dropping in; others are in vehicles or on foot. Also among the soldiers are some Zakus.

Some NATO soldiers are desperately trying to repel their

49

attackers. Like the Zeon soldiers, some are on foot, some are in Humvees. A blast from a Zaku destroys three Humvees at once.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - AIRFIELD.

Some Zakus are attacking this area as well. None of the soldiers are trying to fight back; instead, they're all running to cover as the Zakus fire, destroying the airplanes and killing a few soldiers.

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT.

Chinese corporal Chang Wufei is piloting this Zaku. A wicked smile crosses his face.

CHANG

If the entire fort is as easy to destroy as this section, then we'll be done with this attack before lunch.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - AIRFIELD.

A soldier comes running up to the Zaku; he's got a C4 charge in his hand. He plants the bomb on the Zaku's foot.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Zaku turns, kicking the soldier away - no doubt killing him instantly. A second later, the bomb EXPLODES.

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT.

Chang winces at the blast and braces himself as the Zaku begins to topple over.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - AIRFIELD.

The Zaku tries to climb to its feet, but the bomb has blown off one of the Zaku's legs. The Mobile Suit collapses again.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Some soldiers surround the Zaku. They aim their weapons at the massive machine as the cockpit opens and Chang climbs

50

out.

CHANG

Oh.

He raises his hands.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET. MORNING.

A Zaku FIRES at a Humvee, destroying it.

Travis and Jasmine avoid the explosion as they hurry down the street.

TRAVIS

I gotta get to the armory and get my weapon. Jasmine, you find some place to hide.

JASMINE

Okay. Be careful.

The two of them part ways, just as another blast goes off.

A Zeon soldier sees Jasmine running and fires at her. He misses.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Jasmine climbs over the remains of a destroyed vehicle and keeps running. A second later, a blast from a Zaku hits what's left of the vehicle. The resulting explosion throws Jasmine off her feet. She quickly stands up and keeps running.

Cut to:

INT. - ARMORY. MORNING.

Travis pushes his way past the soldiers rushing in and out of the armory and hurries over to the armorer.

TRAVIS

M4. In my hands. Right now.

51

The armorer hands him an M4 rifle and an ammo vest; attached to the ammo vest are several pouches, and each pouch is holding a magazine of 30 5.56mm rounds.

TRAVIS

Thanks. I'm outta here.

He turns and hurries towards the door, pushing his way past several other soldiers.

TRAVIS

Move, move, get the fuck out of the way!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

He throws on his ammo vest and slams a mag into the rifle as he runs. A second later, he chambers a round, and shoots the first Zeon soldier he sees.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL. MORNING.

Jasmine comes to a stop next to a large steel container. She takes a second to catch her breath, then notices that the doors on the container are unlocked.

JASMINE

As good a place as any to hide.

She opens the container doors and heads inside.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

She stops short at what she sees in front of her - the white arm and blue torso of a Mobile Suit.

She's shocked at the sight of this Mobile Suit, but relaxes when she sees that it's not moving.

JASMINE

What do they think they're doing, keeping this monster here?

She winces as a blast explodes nearby.

52

JASMINE

Beggars can't be choosers, better get in there.

She starts climbing up the Mobile Suit, heading for the cockpit located in its chest.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET. MORNING.

Travis, General Grant, and a few other soldiers take cover and join some other NATO soldiers are having a shootout with some Zeon soldiers. The NATO soldiers take cover as a Zaku FIRES at them. The blast takes out a few soldiers.

TRAVIS

Yeah, this isn't going well.

GRANT

God damn it, someone get a hold of the artillery unit and put some rounds on that target!

Cut to:

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT. MORNING.

Jasmine leans back in the pilot seat, closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath. The sounds of the battle can still be heard outside.

She takes a moment to look at the control panel - there are two control sticks on either side of the pilot seat. Surrounding the cockpit is a series of monitors. The control console itself is studded with buttons and switches, each one with a different function - activation, cockpit control, light control, comms channels, etc.

JASMINE

Wish I knew how to drive one of these things. I'd teach these jerks a lesson.

An explosion rocks the cockpit. Jasmine puts her hands on the control panel to brace herself, and in doing so, ends up hitting the activation button.

53

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The cockpit closes. The lights on the control panel come on. A real-time image is projected on the wraparound view screen, giving a 360 degree panoramic view of the area. A message comes across the screens: "GUNDAM ACTIVATED".

The whole time, Jasmine is FREAKING OUT!

JASMINE

No no no no no no no no no no no! Don't turn on, don't turn on! Turn off, turn off, TURN OFF!

Quick cut to:

EXT. - GUNDAM.

We just catch small glimpses of the Mobile Suit as it powers up - the green lights in its eyes activate and it clenches a fist.

Cut to:

EXT. - MOTOR POOL. MORNING.

Some Zeon soldiers are in a shootout with some NATO soldiers. Most of the Zeon soldiers have been taken out; the only ones left standing are taking cover near the Zaku that's with them.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The arm of the white and blue Mobile Suit BURSTS out of the steel container, followed by the rest of the Mobile Suit as it stands up, and we finally get a good look at it.

It's massive, bigger than the Zakus - standing at about 24 meters tall (so between 70 and 72 feet tall). Its arms, legs, and head are white - not counting the gold V-shaped crest on the forehead - and its torso is blue with yellow and red highlights. On either side of its head are .50 caliber Vulcan cannons. There are what look like knife holsters where its shoulders connect to the torso, and showing over the back of its shoulders, sticking out from its backpack (which consists of two jet thrusters) are two

54

white tubes, one over each shoulder - these are in fact the Mobile Suit's beam sabers.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The sudden appearance of the Mobile Suit catches all the soldiers by surprise.

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT.

The pilot of this Zaku, Venezuelan Sergeant Raoul Maron, is equally as surprised as the soldiers on the ground.

RAOUL

(in Spanish)

What the hell is that?

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's tightly holding onto the control sticks. She's looking absolutely terrified.

JASMINE

Okay, total accident, but maybe I can make this work. Now let's see, how do you move this thing? Maybe these pedals?

She presses her foot down on one of the pedals on the floor.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL.

The Gundam starts moving, but it's not that graceful - it's clunky and clumsy, stumbling around like someone who's drunk. It almost topples over, but manages to right itself before it falls.

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT.

Raoul can't help but laugh.

RAOUL

(laughing)

That thing can barely even move! This is going to be easy.

He moves the control sticks.

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EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL.

The Zaku raises its rifle.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Oh my God!

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL.

The Zaku FIRES. The blast hits the Gundam square in the chest -

But other than a small burn mark, the Gundam is unscathed!

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT

Raoul's absolutely shocked.

RAOUL

How is that thing still standing?

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's just as surprised.

JASMINE

How - what - shouldn't I be dead right now?

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT.

Raoul pulls back on the control sticks.

RAOUL

There is no way that thing could still be standing after taking a blast straight to the chest!

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL.

The Zaku activates its jet thrusters and leaps away.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET. MORNING.

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Raoul's Zaku lands near another Zaku.

INT. - RAMON'S ZAKU - COCKPIT.

This Zaku is piloted by Cuban Corporal Ramon Salazar. He presses a button, activating the radio.

RAMON

Sergeant Maron, is everything okay?

RAOUL (V. O.)

(through the radio)

I haven't been able to get in touch with Wufei. He may be captured or dead.

RAMON

The Chinese guy? I actually liked him!

INT. - RAOUL'S ZAKU - COCKPIT.

RAOUL

Even worse, it seems like the NATO forces have themselves a Mobile Suit.

INT. - RAMON'S ZAKU - COCKPIT.

RAMON

(in Spanish)

What the hell did you just say?

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

The Gundam's coming towards them. It's still stumbling, but not as much.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's now strapped into the pilot seat. She looks at the control panel, trying to figure out what to do.

JASMINE

Think I'm starting to get the hang of this thing. Now, where's the button for the weapons? This one?

She presses a button on the control panel. The lights dim

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a little bit.

JASMINE

Nope. How about this one?

She presses a button on the control sticks.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

That fires the Gundam's head-mounted machine guns. The bullets tear into one of the Zakus; the Zaku isn't destroyed, but it still steps back and raises an arm.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Okay, that's the machine guns, but the bullets won't last forever.

She presses another button on the control sticks.

EXT. - STREET.

The Gundam reaches over its shoulders and takes out its beam sabers. The beam sabers look like lightsabers, but rather than being made of light, the blades are in fact made of concentrated plasma.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

One of the Zakus raises its rifle, but the other Zaku waves it back.

RAOUL (V. O.)

(through the radio)

Ramon, no. This thing can withstand our blasts. You regroup with the main force back at Seattle; I'll fight this Mobile Suit.

RAMON (V. O.)

(through the radio;

in Spanish)

Good luck, Raoul.

Ramon's Zaku turns to leave as Raoul's Zaku drops its rifle

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and reaches behind it, taking its massive ax off its back. The tip of the ax's blade glows yellow as plasma flows through it, activating the beam.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Oh boy.

EXT. - STREET.

The Gundam raises its beam saber, blocking the Zaku's beam ax. The two weapons push against each other.

On: The soldiers.

They've gotten out of the way of the fight and are now watching - some in awe, some in confusion.

GRANT

What the hell? Who's piloting the Gundam?

TRAVIS

Does it really matter right now?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam pushes the Zaku back, then takes out one of its knives. It THROWS the knife at the Zaku. The knife sticks in the Zaku's shoulder.

The Zaku CHARGES for the Gundam. The Gundam activates its jet thrusters and LEAPS out of the way, firing its head-mounted machine guns. The bullets strike the Zaku, but do little damage.

The Gundam lands behind the Zaku; it stumbles for a second before regaining its balance, then dropping down, and with a quick leg sweep, knocks the Zaku off its feet.

The Zaku tries to get up, but the Gundam puts a foot on the Zaku's chest, holding it down, before picking up the Zaku's rifle and aiming it at the Zaku.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT

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JASMINE

This'll stop you, you beast!

INT. - ZAKU COCKPIT

RAOUL

Dios mio!

EXT. - STREET.

The Gundam pulls the trigger. The blast hits the Zaku square in the chest. While the blast blows a hole in the Zaku - no doubt obliterating Raoul - the back blast knocks the Gundam off its feet.

The soldiers slowly start making their way over to the Gundam, their weapons raised.

GRANT

Mobile Suit pilot, climb out of there! Climb out of that cockpit now, or we WILL open fire!

TRAVIS

General, this thing's made out of Gundaniam, and even if it weren't, small arms' fire is useless against a Mobile Suit.

GRANT

It's just a bluff, Travis.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The cockpit opens. A second later, Jasmine's hands appear, then Jasmine herself, her hands raised.

JASMINE

Don't shoot!

Back on: Travis.

He lowers his weapon and just stares at Jasmine; he's totally shocked.

TRAVIS

Jasmine? What the fuck do you think you're doing?

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JASMINE

I'm sorry. It was an accident.

She starts climbing down from the Gundam. Travis helps her down the last few feet.

TRAVIS

An accident, you say?

JASMINE

Well, I was hiding in there, and it just turned on.

General Grant speaks up.

GRANT

Where did you learn to pilot the Gundam?

JASMINE

Gundam?

TRAVIS

That's what we call the big man over here.

An Irish soldier, Private Mackenzie O'Shea, speaks up next.

MACKENZIE

Excuse me, lads, but am I the only one who thinks it's a bad idea to tell a civilian with no security clearance about the RX-78?

TRAVIS

Why not? She drove the thing and destroyed a Zaku.

MACKENZIE

Sergeant, you're only defending her because you want to get into her pants.

Travis walks over to Mackenzie and PUNCHES him.

MACKENZIE

Ow! The bloody hell was that for?!

GRANT

Enough! We have to get the dead and wounded out of here and prepare ourselves in case Zeon decides to launch a

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second attack!

(to Jasmine)

And you...We need to talk.

Cut to:

EXT. - SEATTLE. DAY.

One of the Zakus from the earlier attack comes to a stop near a tent. Char comes out of the tent as the Zaku's cockpit opens and Ramon lowers himself down on a tether.

CHAR

I take it the attack was successful?

Ramon just shakes his head.

CHAR

What happened?

RAMON

It was a Mobile Suit.

CHAR

What? A Mobile Suit? Did a NATO soldier hijack a Zaku?

Again, Ramon shakes his head.

RAMON

No, it was a white Mobile Suit. El blanco diablo.

CHAR

A white devil? I have to see this for myself.

He starts walking away.

RAMON

Senor Aznable? That Mobile Suit destroyed a Zaku. Sergeant Maron is dead.

CHAR

I understand. But as Mobile Suit pilot myself, I need to understand for myself the power of this so-called "White Devil".

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Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON - SITUATION ROOM. DAY.

Secretary of Defense Barton is on the phone with someone. A few aides are standing nearby as Barton talks to whoever's on the other line.

BARTON

I understand. Well, I'm sorry to hear that. No, Sherman, you've got somebody who can actually pilot the Gundam, that's what we'd been looking for. Okay, call me back when you can, General.

He hangs up.

BARTON

Well, that was General Sherman Grant out at Fort Lewis, Washington. Seems that Zeon attacked the base early this morning, and were repelled by the Gundam.

AIDE

They actually found a pilot?

BARTON

From what he said, it was someone who survived the Seattle attack. I wonder...Could this person possibly be one?

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - INFIRMARY. DAY.

Medics are tending to the wounded; some of the wounds are quite severe. A few people are covered in white sheets and wheeled out on stretchers.

IN THE HALLWAY -

Travis and General Grant are speaking with Jasmine.

JASMINE

Forget it! The only reason I piloted that thing earlier was because if I didn't that Mobile Suit was going to tear me to bits!

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GRANT

I understand, but please, hear me out.

TRAVIS

Jasmine, we spent months trying to find people to pilot the Gundam. You're the only one to effectively pilot the thing.

JASMINE

I don't care if I AM the only person to pilot that metal monster, I don't want to do it! I've already seen too much damage caused by these beasts. I'm not going to fight, I'm no soldier.

GRANT

Jasmine, whether you like it or not, you took another human's life today.

JASMINE

I - I what?

GRANT

Mobile Suits don't drive themselves. You killed a man.

JASMINE

And that is another reason I don't want to take part in this war.

GRANT

Jasmine, listen to me. The second Zeon attacked Seattle - hell, the second they attacked America in general - you became a part of the battle. All of America is part of the battle now. And it's like Travis said a moment ago, no one else could pilot the Gundam.

Jasmine doesn't say anything, she just turns away from them.

JASMINE

I...

GRANT

I understand your hesitation. The first time I was deployed to a theater of war, I was nervous as hell. I didn't want to go. I knew there was the possibility that I could end up dead, and that's why I didn't want to fight.

64

TRAVIS

Or you can think of it like this, Jasmine - by piloting the Gundam, you'll be getting your revenge against Zeon. I mean, they took everything from you. Friends, family -

JASMINE

(seething with anger)

Travis, don't go there...

TRAVIS

Sorry, Jasmine. What I'm trying to say is, everybody wants a little payback for what those assholes took from us - friends, families, homes, lives. There are people all over this nation right now looking for some way to get back at Zeon. The Gundam could give them hope.

JASMINE

Hope for what?

GRANT

Hope for a quick end to the war. Hope for peace. Hope for a better tomorrow.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

A British soldier, Corporal Nathaniel Greene, comes running down the hall towards them. He stops and snaps a crisp salute at General Grant.

NATHANIEL

General Grant, sir.

GRANT

What's the matter, Corporal Greene?

NATHANIEL

We have incoming, sir. From the look of things, it's the Red Comet.

GRANT

Char Aznable? Christ.

TRAVIS

This day just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it, General?

65

He turns to leave, but Jasmine speaks up, stopping him.

JASMINE

He's coming in one of those metallic monsters, isn't he? A Mobile Suit?

NATHANIEL

His Sazabi.

JASMINE

And I suppose you're going to tell me that the only thing that can fight a Mobile Suit is another Mobile Suit, and the only Mobile Suit around here is that Gundam, and that I'm the only one capable of operating the damn thing, right?

For a minute, no one says anything.

And then, General Grant breaks the silence.

GRANT

Thank you, Jasmine. I know it's a lot to ask.

JASMINE

I just suddenly feel like the entire weight of the world is pressing down on my shoulders.

GRANT

We just need you to hold Char off long enough for everyone to get ready to evacuate.

NATHANIEL

But General, there are still wounded in the infirmary.

GRANT

Then we'll make sure we get them out first. We don't want any more casualties than we already have. And while that's happening, I'm gonna go have a little chat with our Chinese friend.

Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON - BARTON'S OFFICE. DAY.

There's a knock on the door, causing Barton to look up from his computer.

66

BARTON

Yeah?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The door opens, and Willis steps into the room, shutting the door behind him.

WILLIS

I know you say that people need an appointment to talk to the Secretary of Defense, but I just learned something that I think you need to know.

BARTON

Wait a minute, I know you. You're the guy who told us all about Zeon. It's Willis, isn't it? Willis Drake?

WILLIS

That's right, Mr. Secretary.

He sits down in one of the chairs across from Barton's desk.

BARTON

Unless you're on assignment, what are you doing so far from home?

WILLIS

Because, Mr. Secretary, I just learned that the CIA director, Noah Hathaway, had been hiding important information. Important information that could have saved thousands of lives.

BARTON

What are you talking about, Willis?

WILLIS

I just learned that when Zeon was formed, they had planned to attack America. Everything that's happened in the last forty-eight hours, they had it planned from the very beginning. Noah hid this information from us.

BARTON

Are you sure about that?

WILLIS

67

Noah told me this himself. He said that they didn't have "credible evidence". Well, that's a line of bullshit if I ever heard one. He's got another reason, I just don't know what that reason is.

BARTON

So what exactly are you insinuating?

WILLIS

I don't think he's a traitor, and he's certainly not a spy, but he had to have had a reason to keep this intel a secret. He could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives if he had brought this information out from the very beginning.

Barton facepalms.

BARTON

But the only one who can tell us that is Noah Hathaway. And something tells me he'll just skirt around telling the truth.

WILLIS

Well, if that's the way the CIA works anymore, then I'm sorry that I'm associated with a group like that.

For a moment, neither of them say anything.

WILLIS

Like I said, I don't think Noah's our enemy. But he had his reasons. And like you said, Mr. Secretary, Noah's the only one who can tell us what those reasons are.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - INTERROGATION ROOM. DAY.

Wufei's pacing back and forth in the small room. He stops when the door opens; General Grant comes in and shuts the door behind him.

WUFEI

How long do you intend to keep me imprisoned in here?

GRANT

68

Not long. I give you my word that as soon as we're done with this conversation, I'll arrange transport for you back to Beijing.

WUFEI

How about you return me to my unit?

GRANT

You're better off going home. I'm sure there's someone there waiting for you.

He gestures towards the table in the middle of the room.

GRANT

We only have a few minute, but how about you take a seat?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Wufei sits at the table; Grant sits a second later.

WUFEI

You might as well kill me now.

GRANT

You're a Zeon soldier. And a Mobile Suit pilot. As such, you may have information that could be useful to us.

WUFEI

Like what?

GRANT

Like why you decided to attack America.

WUFEI

Does a lion need a reason to attack a gazelle?

GRANT

A lion attacks a gazelle because it's hungry. Is that what you're saying, that it was Zeon's hunger for power that led to this?

WUFEI

That's one way of looking at it. But look at it from the point of view of everyone else in the world. The United States of America. You proclaim to be a land of the free

69

and home of the brave - and I'll admit that you are very brave when you want to be. But to everyone else in the world, you are the great evil. You police the world, parading around like the Earth belongs to you. Why do you think everyone wants to attack you? To show you that you're not as strong as you think you are, and in the past several years you've grown incredibly weak. Your economy is suffering, national unemployment is at its highest rate, and your government is as corrupt as the Romans of old.

GRANT

And there you go, comparing us to people who have been dead for nearly two thousand years.

WUFEI

But you can't deny that I'm right.

GRANT

Okay, let's assume that you are right -

WUFEI

Which I am.

GRANT

That still doesn't answer one question that's been plaguing everyone's mind: Why make the Mobile Suits?

WUFEI

We're humans. And as human beings, we are constantly finding ways to better ourselves - even if that means coming up with new ways to destroy ourselves. The Mobile Suits are just another addition to the immense arsenal of weapons mankind has made in the four million years that we've dominated the planet.

(pause)

Have you ever been in a Mobile Suit, General?

GRANT

No.

WUFEI

Can't say as I'm surprised. You probably wouldn't be able to operate a Suit, if the gene wasn't active in you - unless you had months of training, but even then, you wouldn't last long on the battlefield. But piloting a

70

Mobile Suit is very much akin to piloting an aircraft, albeit on a more personal level since you're operating a machine with two arms and legs. And of course the weapons. The rifles - by now I'm sure you've noticed the ammunition they take. Given the average size of a Mobile Suit, an 80mm tank round is comparable to a 7.62mm armor piercing round. Some come with actual knives, but the beam weapons - you may think they're lasers, but instead, they're made of very concentrated super-hot plasma. Think about it - lasers would be very impractical. It would take a laser three months to burn through something as thick as the Great Wall of China, but a plasma beam can burn though it in just a few minutes.

GRANT

And you're telling me this...why?

WUFEI

Don't think I didn't see it out there. I saw your own Mobile Suit. That white monstrosity. If you release me like you say you will, what's to stop me from telling my fellow Zeon soldiers about it?

GRANT

I've seen what happens to Zeon soldiers we take prisoner and then release. Especially from China and North Korea - I've seen soldiers from those nations executed as soon as they're released from NATO custody.

He stands up.

GRANT

So even though we promised to fly you back to China, what's to stop the Chinese government, or even your fellow Zeon soldiers, from killing you as soon as you get off that plane? Food for thought, Chang.

He leaves the room.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET. DAY.

The Gundam is standing still in the middle of the street; the sunlight glistening off of it gives it a regal and

71

heroic look. It's now armed with its rifle and a big red shield.

There are a few vehicles at the Gundam's feet; they're primarily civilian vehicles - pickup trucks, SUVs, etc. The soldiers who had been wounded in the earlier battle are being loaded into each vehicle.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's once again strapped into the pilot's seat. She's gripping the control sticks and eying the view screens.

JASMINE

I guess it's time to face reality. Whenever this Char guy shows up, I'll have a 50-50 chance of surviving.

She closes her eyes.

JASMINE

I'm not liking this already.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS.

Something red goes STREAKING past overhead. A few seconds later, that something lands in front of the Gundam, crushing a SUV beneath its feet.

That something is a Mobile Suit. It's massive, slightly taller than the Gundam and much bulkier. The Mobile Suit's primary colors are red and black. Its head has a streamlined look to it, with a long crest coming off the top of the head. There are what look like two massive wings on the back - each wing is studded with small missile ports - and cradled in the Suit's arms is a massive black rifle. This is the Sazabi, the personal Mobile Suit of Char Aznable.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Sazabi raises its rifle at the Gundam. As it does this, the Gundam raises its shield.

But the Sazabi doesn't fire. Instead, the Sazabi's cockpit opens, revealing Char inside.

72

CHAR

Let me see your face. Open your cockpit.

The Gundam's cockpit opens.

Back on: Char.

His eyes go wide with surprise when he sees Jasmine.

CHAR

You must be joking. That Mobile Suit's pilot is just a little girl?

He quickly overcomes his shock.

CHAR

Tell me, little girl, what is your name? My name is Commander Char Aznable. Now tell me your name.

JASMINE

It's Jasmine. Jasmine Pryce.

A smile crosses Char's face.

CHAR

You should be honored, Miss Pryce, being challenged to a duel by a pilot of my caliber.

JASMINE

Is that supposed to make me feel better, you murderer?

CHAR

I'm no murderer. I merely want to test your skills as a Mobile Suit pilot. I'm not going to kill you. But it's sure to be an interesting fight.

He closes his cockpit. The Gundam's cockpit closes a second later.

The Sazabi once again raises its rifle at the Gundam and FIRES. The Gundam quickly raises its shield. The round hits the shield, barely damaging it - just leaving a small burn mark thanks to Gundaniam's near invulnerability - but the blast is enough to knock the Gundam to the ground.

73

The Gundam quickly climbs to its feet and CHARGES at the Sazabi, FIRING its rifle. The Sazabi dodges the blast, then opens fire with its wing missiles. The Gundam dodges the wing missiles as they harmlessly impact the street.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Sazabi throws its rifle away in exchange for a beam saber. It SLASHES at the Gundam. The Gundam blocks the sword its its shield. The Sazabi slashes at the Gundam again, this time scratching the Gundam's torso.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine winces.

JASMINE

Okay. Let's try this.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS. STREET.

The Gundam drops its rifle and shield and takes out the knives from its shoulder holsters. It dodges another sword swipe from the Sazabi, then throws one of its knives. The knife hits the Sazabi in the neck.

INT. - SAZABI COCKPIT.

Char winces from the impact.

CHAR

Okay, that was impressive.

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - INFIRMARY. DAY.

There are only a few medics left to take care of what few wounded remain. Grant and Travis are helping out as best as they can.

TRAVIS

Sounds like the fight's started. Couldn't Char have waited until we got everyone out of here?

74

GRANT

Travis, quit your bitching. There's only a few people left to evacuate, so let's hurry up and move them before this place gets crushed.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

The Gundam has the Sazabi on the defensive now, slashing at it with its free knife; the other knife is still stuck in the Sazabi's neck. The Sazabi dodges another knife swipe, then grabs the Gundam's arm.

INT. - SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

Got you.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

The Sazabi starts spinning around before letting go of the Gundam. The Gundam crashes on top of a barracks building. It slowly climbs to its feet before reaching over its shoulders and taking out its two beam sabers.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

You're asking for it.

INT. - SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

Now things are getting interesting.

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

The two Mobile Suits charge for each other. They cross weapons.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Several vehicles quickly drive away from the base.

75

BACK TO - THE MOBILE SUITS.

The Gundam pushes the Sazabi away, and with one good swing, takes off the Sazabi's arm. Another swipe gets ready to take off the Sazabi's head. The Sazabi dodges at the last second, ducking and rolling away. It stands up and turns back to the Gundam.

CHAR (V. O.)

(through the radio)

Miss Pryce.

INT. - SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

I was right. This was an interesting battle. I can tell you have promise as a Mobile Suit pilot. But let me ask you something - Is the gene active in you? Are you a Newtype?

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine can't help but look totally confused at Char's words.

JASMINE

Newtype? What are you talking about? What the hell is a Newtype?

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - STREET.

The Sazabi activates the jet thrusters on its wings and takes to the air, flying off towards Seattle.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's sitting back in the pilot seat; she's still looking really confused.

JASMINE

What was he talking about? Newtype? What is that?

Cut to:

INT. - FORT LEWIS - BASE HEADQUARTERS. DAY.

76

Grant looks up at Jasmine from the duffel bag he's packing.

GRANT

He said what?

JASMINE

He called me a "Newtype", whatever that is.

GRANT

He did, huh?

JASMINE

So, General, you know what a Newtype is?

Grant sits in the chair. Jasmine sits in the chair across from him.

GRANT

I've heard of Newtypes. The term "Newtype" describes someone with much faster reflexes than a normal person. You see, Jasmine, inside each of us is a gene - for a majority of Earth's population, this gene is dormant, but in about a quarter of the population - most of them with Zeon, believe it or not - this gene is active. When it's active, it grants a person much faster reflexes than normal. The average reaction time of a normal person is about 0.5 seconds - about the amount of time it takes someone to blink. But for a Newtype, that number is cut down to about 0.1 seconds. And there's even some speculation that some Newtypes have higher cognitive abilities.

JASMINE

You mean, like, psychic?

GRANT

You could say that, but like I said, it's just speculation. And if you're wondering what's so special about faster reflexes, well, from what I understand you have to be pretty quick to pilot a Mobile Suit. They say piloting a Mobile Suit is like piloting an aircraft, but I guess you have to react much faster.

JASMINE

And you think I'm one of these people? These Newtypes?

77

GRANT

Anything's possible. For all we know, everyone on this installation could be a Newtype and nobody would know. Not that that's a bad thing, of course, but we don't have any more time to go into this.

He stands up.

GRANT

Zeon knows that this installation is weak, and with less than 50 people, we wouldn't withstand another attack like the one this morning - even WITH the Gundam. That's why we gotta get out of here. I talked to Secretary of Defense Trevor Barton earlier, and he's expecting us in Washington soon.

JASMINE

How? I saw the airport earlier. All the planes were destroyed in the attack this morning.

GRANT

Damn, I didn't think about that. Well, I guess we'll be arriving a little later than expected.

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - MOTOR POOL. EVENING.

There are only a few military vehicles left intact. These include Humvees, MATVs, and one troop transport truck. The Gundam is lying on a long flatbed hitched to the transport truck; a few soldiers are strapping a large tarp over the Gundam.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

General Grant starts to address the soldiers.

GRANT

Everyone! Listen up! By now you've probably figured out that Fort Lewis is no longer safe.

SOLDIER

No. Ya think?

78

MACKENZIE

Oi! That's General Grant you're talking to.

GRANT

Enough! military bearing doesn't matter right now. Here in a little while, we'll start making our way to Washington DC to meet up with Trevor Barton at the Pentagon. Normally we'd be going in our planes, but they're all trashed after the events of this morning, so we're taking the long way. I hope everyone's vehicles are gassed up, because it's going to be a long trip.

A soldier raises his hand.

GRANT

Yeah?

SOLDIER

What if we encounter enemy forces along the way?

GRANT

We'll avoid them as best we can and only engage in battle if we absolutely have to. Besides, we've got the Gundam, so we'll have a small chance, but with only 50 of us, our chances are still minimum. But don't worry, I've got a plan that may just work, but I can't put it to use just yet. We've got to get as far away from the Zeon forces here as possible. So do one more check of your vehicles and your weapons. Make sure the trucks are gassed up and the weapons are loaded. We're wheels up in 10, let's go!

Cut to:

EXT. - FORT LEWIS - EAST GATE. EVENING.

A small convoy of vehicles is pulling away from the installation.

IN GENERAL GRANT'S TRUCK -

Grant starts tuning a CB radio.

TRAVIS

I take it that radio's part of your big plan, huh, General?

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GRANT

I know there are people listening in on the UN open frequency. So I'm gonna put the word out - anyone who wants is welcome to join us.

TRAVIS

But don't you think Zeon will hear this?

GRANT

It's a calculated risk.

He presses a button and starts speaking into the radio.

GRANT

This is General Sherman Grant of Fort Lewis, Washington, broadcasting on open United Nations channel. We have sustained heavy casualties from Zeon attacks and require reinforcements. Any and all who hear this - if you have weapons, feel free to join our convoy as we make our way to Washington DC.

He puts the radio down and leans back in the seat.

TRAVIS

You think it'll work?

GRANT

Fingers crossed, Sergeant O'Grady. I doubt many of them have had any proper training, but at this point, who really cares? As long as we can make it to the nation's capital in one piece.

MUSIC CUE: "CITIZEN/SOLDIER" BY 3 DOORS DOWN

EXT. - TOWN. EVENING.

The convoy drives past a motel. Three pickup trucks are sitting in the parking lot. The occupants - all civilian; a few of them look like they're ready to go out on a hunting trip - are standing around the trucks or in the beds of the trucks.

One of the people, dressed in hunting camouflage, bangs on the truck, rallying everyone else.

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HUNTER

There they are. Let's roll.

Cut to:

EXT. - SHOPPING CENTER. NIGHT.

A few civilian vehicles join the convoy.

Cut to:

EXT. - DESERTED ROAD. NIGHT.

The convoy drives past a fork in the road. A small car is sitting at the stop sign. A couple of college-age guys are sitting inside. They turn to face each other.

COLLEGE GUY #1

You ready?

They shake hands.

COLLEGE GUY #2

Let's do this.

The driver maneuvers the car to join the convoy.

IN ONE OF THE HUMVEES -

Jasmine's staring out the window. The driver - Mackenzie O'Shea - turns to her.

MACKENZIE

You felling' all right, lass?

JASMINE

Should I say yes? Or should I say no?

MACKENZIE

Listen, Jasmine, I'm sorry about what I said earlier. When we saw you piloting the Gundam during the attack. I didn't mean it.

JASMINE

Forget it. I just want to get some rest.

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MACKENZIE

Might as well get it in while you can. Jasmine?

She's already fallen asleep.

Fade to:

EXT. - YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK - FOREST. EARLY MORNING.

The convoy has formed a circle in a clearing. There's a few people - soldiers and civilians alike - keeping guard.

One of the civilians - dressed in hunting gear and armed with a 30-06 bolt action rifle and standing in the bed of his pickup truck - is scanning the treeline. He spots something and raises his rifle.

His partner - Japanese Lieutenant Suguroku Nadaki - turns to the hunter as he looks down the scope.

SUGUROKU

What's the matter? You see something?

HUNTER

Think I saw a couple of Arabs over there.

SUGUROKU

Must be Iranians.

The hunter clicks the safety off, just as Travis shows up - he's making his rounds.

TRAVIS

What's going on?

HUNTER

Got a couple of bad guys over there, Sarge. I'm taking them out.

SUGUROKU

Leave them alone.

TRAVIS

Don't pull that trigger.

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HUNTER

I'm pulling the trigger.

TRAVIS

DON'T pull that trigger.

HUNTER

I'm pulling it.

He pulls the trigger, reloads, then fires again - he's taken out both Iranian soldiers.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The hunter's gunfire has awoken everyone in the convoy. Some immediately rush to grab their weapons, others just look to see what's going on.

GRANT

What happened? Who's firing?

Back on: The hunter.

He raises the barrel of his rifle and turns to face everyone else.

HUNTER

It's okay. Bad guys are dead.

KABOOM! The truck EXPLODES as it's hit by a round from a Mobile Suit's rifle.

TRAVIS

Oh shit!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Something comes out of the treeline - it's a squad of blue Mobile Suits called Goufs. The Goufs are about the same size as the Zakus, but blue in color with what look like spikes on their shoulders, and they're much slimmer than their green counterparts.

Also among the Goufs are three bulkier, dark purple Mobile Suits - Doms.

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Back on: Travis.

He starts running towards one of the humvees.

TRAVIS

Goufs and Doms! The Black Tri-Stars are leading the attack!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

People start rushing to their vehicles - some in the driver's and passengers' seats, some in the gun turrets - as the Goufs and Doms start firing at them. One humvee is blown up as a Dom's round strikes it.

Back on: Travis.

He climbs into the gunner's turret of a humvee and starts manning the .50-cal machine gun. As he starts shooting at a nearby Gouf, Jasmine goes running past.

TRAVIS

Jasmine!

JASMINE

Get to the Gundam, I know!

She hurries over to the trailer that has the Gundam on it, as some soldiers cut the straps and the tarp falls off.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Grant climbs into Travis's humvee and starts the engine.

TRAVIS

We can't stay in the woods, General - it's too enclosed!

GRANT

I know. We have to move off to the Interstate!

TRAVIS

The Interstate? Oh, shit, that place is gonna be fucking packed.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

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Jasmine straps herself into the pilot's seat and presses the activation button. The lights on the control console come on as the view screen flickers to life.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

She tries moving the control sticks, but they won't move.

JASMINE

Come on, Gundam, move! MOVE, DAMN IT!

EXT. - FOREST. EARLY MORNING.

The convoy starts to move out; the soldiers and civilians in the gun turrets are still firing at the Mobile Suits. .50-cal and 40mm grenades pound against the Suits' armor. A Gouf shoots a pickup truck, destroying it.

Quick cut to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. MORNING.

The convoy is weaving through the civvie cars on the roadway; the Mobile Suits are right behind them. The Suits are firing their weapons; some rounds hit the road, blowing holes in the asphalt and destroy some civvie vehicles.

A young college guy in one of the humvees is manning a 40mm grenade launcher.

COLLEGE GUY

Yeah! Eat it! Eat it, motherfucker!

The driver - it's Mackenzie - shakes his head.

MACKENZIE

Where the bloody hell do we find these guys?

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine's still trying to get the control sticks to move. After a moment, she finally gets them to move.

JASMINE

Finally.

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EXT. - INTERSTATE.

The Gundam rolls off the trailer and quickly stands; it's armed with its rifle and shield. As soon as it stands, it quickly turns and FIRES, blowing a hole through a Gouf. Another Gouf fires at the Gundam; it deflects the blast with its shield.

The Gundam swaps its rifle out for a beam saber and CHARGES for an incoming Gouf; it SLICES the Gouf in half.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Who's next?

EXT. - INTERSTATE.

The Gundam THROWS its beam saber; the blade sticks into the faceplate of a Gouf. A Dom comes up from behind the Gouf and pushes it aside.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

OZAI

There it is, the White Devil that Commander Aznable told us about. Let's take it down, Jorge, Ki-Lan.

INT. - JORGE'S DOM - COCKPIT.

JORGE

Roger that.

INT. - KI-LAN'S DOM - COCKPIT.

KI-LAN

Let's take it down!

EXT. - INTERSTATE.

One of the Dom's SMASHES through a tanker truck, before it TACKLES the Gundam, sending both Mobile Suits careening off the overpass -

And into the path of an oncoming school bus. The bus skids

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to a stop as the two Mobile Suits climb back to their feet and start viciously fighting. The Gundam blocks a beam saber attack by the Dom with its spare beam saber, then RAMS the end of its shield into the Dom's face, shattering it and sending it stumbling back. It falls off the edge of the road, with the Gundam giving chase.

All the while, the kids in the bus are cheering, but the driver isn't as enthusiastic.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The two Mobile Suits have ended up in a small river running beneath the Interstate. The Gundam sidesteps to avoid a blast from the Dom, then throws its beam saber. The sword sticks into the Dom's left shoulder.

The Gundam takes out one of its knives and CHARGES at the Dom. The Dom tries to fight back, but the Gundam's just too fast; it sticks the blade of the knife in the Dom's chest, piercing the cockpit.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The other two Doms have finally arrived, just as their comrade falls to the ground, inoperable.

INT. - JORGE'S DOM - COCKPIT.

Jorge's trying to raise Ki-Lan on the radio.

JORGE

Ki-Lan! Ki-Lan, can you hear me, amigo?

He's not getting an answer.

JORGE

Chingada. He must be dead.

He glares at the Gundam, which is turning towards him. The Gundam raises its rifle.

JORGE

Come get me, you monster!

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EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom takes out its beam saber and CHARGES for the Gundam.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

OZAI

Jorge, don't do anything rash!

EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom CHARGES for the Gundam. The Gundam quickly moves out of the way and delivers a hard kick to the Dom's back, causing it to fall into the water. The Dom stands up and turns to face the Gundam again, its beam saber in one hand, its rifle in the other.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Both Doms aim at the Gundam and FIRE. Their blasts hit the Gundam in the front and the back at the same time.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine winces at the shockwaves.

JASMINE

Hold it together, Gundam.

EXT. - RIVER.

The Gundam recovers from the barrage and FIRES its .50-cal machine guns at Jorge's Dom. The bullets tear into the Dom's armor.

Ozai's Dom comes charging at the Gundam from behind. The Gundam quickly jumps out of the way, flipping over the Dom's head while still firing its machine guns. As soon as it lands, it raises its rifle and FIRES. The round hits Jorge's Dom square in the chest.

INT. - JORGE'S DOM - COCKPIT.

The control console starts sparking and popping, before EXPLODING IN JORGE'S FACE!

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EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom collapses into the river.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

Ozai can only stare in shock at the smoking remains of his comrades' Mobile Suits.

OZAI

Jorge. Ki-Lan.

He tightens his grip on the control sticks and glares at the Gundam in anger; tears of anger are filling his eyes.

OZAI

(quietly)

You'll pay for that.

EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom CHARGES at the Gundam. Before the Gundam can react, the Dom TACKLES the Gundam. Both Mobile Suits fall into the water. The Gundam throws the Dom off and climbs to its feet. It reaches for its rifle, but the Dom fires its own rifle, stopping the Gundam.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam takes out its spare knife; a third knife extends from its right forearm. It CHARGES for the Dom.

The Dom ducks down and clips the Gundam's legs, knocking it down. The Gundam quickly stands up and gets ready to charge again. It stops when the Dom aims its rifle at it.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

OZAI

This is for Jorge and Ki-Lan!

EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom FIRES.

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INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Oh no!

She moves the control sticks.

EXT. - RIVER.

The Gundam raises its shield, deflecting the blast. The round bounces off of the shield -

And instead it hits the support columns holding up a nearby bridge. The bridge starts to collapse, sending people and vehicles into the water below.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine can only watch in horror.

JASMINE

No...No...What - what have I done? No. Not me.

She glares at the Dom.

JASMINE

Murderous bastard!

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

Ozai rolls his eyes.

OZAI

I'm not a murderer! We're fighting a war here! Shit like that happens! So you might as well get used to it, little girl.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine tightens her grip on the control sticks.

JASMINE

I've had enough. I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!

EXT. - RIVER.

90

The Gundam CHARGES for the Dom. The Dom moves out of the way and SLAMS the butt of its rifle into the Gundam's chest. The Gundam quickly recovers, then stabs the Dom in the chest.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

The blade comes through the control console, and misses Ozai by just a few inches.

OZAI

(in Chinese)

Oh shit, that was close.

EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom raises its rifle at the Gundam's head. The Gundam ducks down out of the way as the Dom FIRES, then, with its free hand, presses its rifle into the Dom's chest and FIRES.

The blast tears through the whole right side of the Dom.

INT. - OZAI'S DOM - COCKPIT.

The control console starts sparking and popping. Some parts of the control console actually burst into small flames.

OZAI

Jorge, Ki-Lan, I'm sorry, my friends.

The entire cockpit catches fire; Ozai's engulfed in the flames.

EXT. - RIVER.

The Dom's chest EXPLODES, causing both Mobile Suits to fall back. The Gundam sits up on its elbows, getting a good look at the smoking hull of the Dom.

INT. - GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine can only stare in shock.

JASMINE

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I - I don't -

She looks down at her hands; they're shaking almost uncontrollably.

JASMINE

Black Tri-Stars, I - I'm sorry.

She buries her face in her hands and starts crying.

Cut to:

EXT. - ROADSIDE. DAY.

Jasmine has now regrouped with the rest of the convoy. The Gundam is once again strapped to a flatbed trailer. Jasmine's nearby, just staring at it.

JASMINE

A monster. I'm becoming a monster.

NATHANIEL (O. S.)

What's that, Jasmine?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Nathaniel joins her.

JASMINE

I feel like I'm becoming something I'm not. A ruthless killer.

NATHANIEL

Jasmine, we're not murderers. We're fighting a war, people are going to die.

JASMINE

But soldiers and innocents alike?

NATHANIEL

Can't be helped.

TRAVIS (O. S.)

Hey you guys!

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ANOTHER ANGLE.

Travis comes hurrying up to them.

TRAVIS

The Secretary of Defense is about to hold a press conference. Come on, one of the civvies is gonna let us watch it on his iPad.

Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON - PRESS ROOM. DAY.

Secretary Baron is just stepping into the room; Willis isn't far behind. Barton steps up to the podium.

BARTON

Good afternoon. First off, let me just say that the thoughts and prayers of everyone in this building go out to the friends and families of the victims of these devastating Zeon attacks. And sadly, I just learned that Central Intelligence had information regarding these attacks, and how Zeon had planned them from the beginning, and if they had come forward with this intel, we would have been able to prevent this immense loss of life. But let me just say that there is hope. Even now, a prototype weapon is on its way here. For reasons, I can't tell you where this weapon is coming from, but I can say that this weapon will be a beacon of hope for all of us.

Cut to:

EXT. - ROADSIDE. DAY.

Jasmine looks away from the group, back towards the Gundam.

JASMINE

Hope. He can say that, but he's not the one piloting that beast. He's not the one killing people.

Cut to:

EXT. - INTERSTATE. DAY.

A group of Zeon troop and cargo planes goes flying overhead.

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INT. - RUSSIAN TROOP TRANSPORT PLANE - COCKPIT.

The two pilots are looking down at the damage done by the earlier battle - including the smoking remains of the Goufs and the Black Tri-Stars' Doms.

PILOT

(whistles)

Would you look at all that carnage.

CO-PILOT

That's what happens when Mobile Suits fight.

He spots the Black Tri-Stars' destroyed Doms.

CO-PILOT

Wait a minute, is that the Black Tri-Stars?

PILOT

They lost? How?

Char joins them.

CHAR

It must have been NATO's Mobile Suit. The White Devil is certainly living up to its name.

CO-PILOT

You fought that thing and survived, Commander Aznable.

CHAR

Because it wasn't a real battle. It was a simple test of strength. And I'd say the pilot of that Mobile Suit is getting much stronger.

He turns to head back to the cabin.

CO-PILOT

But, the Black Tri-Stars -

CHAR

It's too late to help them. All we can do is move on and destroy that Mobile Suit.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

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Char takes a seat in the cabin. He leans back in the seat and crosses his arms. Another Russian - Commander Dmitri Smirnov - joins him.

DMITRI

Shame about the Black Tri-Stars.

CHAR

A shame? Commander Smirnov, they were Zeon's top ace team. And the fact that a little girl destroyed them is just humiliating.

DMITRI

What? Say that again, Char.

CHAR

(chuckles)

Oh, it's true. A civilian girl, believe it or not. And I believe she's a Newtype.

DMITRI

Just like you.

CHAR

The fact that she destroyed the Black Tri-Stars just means that she's getting stronger, and her abilities are growing by the minute. By the end of the war, whenever that will be, she may even be more powerful than I am.

Cut to:

INT. - PENTAGON - BARTON'S OFFICE. DAY.

Barton and Willis are back in here now. Barton's checking something on the computer, while Willis is sitting nearby, playing with his cell phone.

BARTON

Hey Willis, how's that phone?

WILLIS

Funny.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

95

Noah throws the door open as he STORMS into the room. The door slams shut behind him as he turns to face Willis; he doesn't look too happy.

NOAH

Willis, who the fuck do you think you are, giving out information like that?

BARTON

I'm glad he did, Noah. Now look, you and me need to talk about this.

NOAH

Okay, fine, but Willis - when we're done here, you and me are gonna have a nice long discussion about your future with the agency.

BARTON

Noah! You had a reason for withholding that information, and I want to know what that reason was. And if you tell me that it was because you didn't have any credible evidence, I will not hesitate to throw you through that fucking wall.

NOAH

Well, when you put it that way...Yes, I did have a legitimate reason, but let me assure you that it was for the good of the country.

WILLIS

The good of the country? Noah, thanks to you, people are dead.

NOAH

I know. I wasn't expecting the devastation to be this bad. I mean, I knew it was going to be bad, but I didn't know it would be like this.

BARTON

Get to the point, Noah.

NOAH

Fine. Listen, I'm sure you've noticed by now the terrible state of our economy. Well, the idea was that the war would help fix that mess.

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WILLIS

You did this all for money?

NOAH

Not for me. For the country. Think about it. In 1941, America was still suffering the effects of the stock market crash of 1929 - you know, the Great Depression? And then the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. After that, jobs were created and the economy grew exponentially. Why? Because during the war, investors were putting their money into their shares, and the economy recovered. I'm sure you've noticed that in the past couple of days, the same thing has been happening - even more so than it has the entire war. Have you seen the DOW lately? It's at its highest point in three years. So you see, I had a good reason.

Back on: Barton.

He facepalms.

BARTON

Noah, I get that you had good intentions, but the ends do not justify the means. I mean, fixing the economy at the expense of thousands of innocent lives lost? Have you seen what's going on out there, Noah? People - innocent people - are dying every second. Mobile Suits are destroying major cities, and in the past two minutes, an additional 1,000 people have probably died.

NOAH

It'll be worth it in the end, Mr. Secretary.

WILLIS

Everyone says that, Noah. But in the end, you can't deny that you had a hand in their deaths.

NOAH

Willis, don't start that shit.

BARTON

No, let him. Because I don't think you know just what you've been doing.

NOAH

I know damn well what I've been doing, Mr. Secretary. With

97

respect, I don't need you or some low-level operative telling me how to do my fucking job.

He turns to leave.

BARTON

Noah, don't walk away from me! We're not finished yet!

NOAH

We ARE finished, Mr. Secretary. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to find a way to fix what I've done.

BARTON

I'm sorry, Noah, but you can't.

NOAH

Then at least I can keep more people from dying. I don't want to spend God knows how long waiting for your "beacon of hope" to get here.

He leaves the room.

Back on: Willis.

He shakes his head.

WILLIS

You think he meant that? That he was going to try to fix this?

BARTON

I know Noah. If he makes a mistake, he tries his damnedest to fix it. But I think he's right about one thing - we DON'T have that much time to wait for the Gundam to get here.

WILLIS

How do we even know that the Gundam's still operational?

BARTON

Its outer shell is made of Gundaniam. That metal's practically indestructible.

WILLIS

I hope you're right, Mr. Secretary.

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Cut to:

EXT. - SMALL TOWN - SERVICE STATION. DAY.

The entire convoy has pulled into the service station to gas up. There's a line of local vehicles behind them, all impatiently waiting their turn at the pumps.

One driver leans out the window of his vehicle.

ANGRY DRIVER

Hurry the fuck up! Some of us have places we have to be!

TRAVIS

Oh, wait your turn.

Quick cut to:

INT. - SERVICE STATION.

The clerk working the counter is hurriedly ringing up the items General Grant has put on the counter.

CLERK

I know you guys are with the army, but are you feeding the whole darn thing?

GRANT

Hardly.

CLERK

And I couldn't help but notice that trailer out there. Don't know what you're hauling -

GRANT

And maybe it's better off that way.

CLERK

Hey, it ain't any of my business. What IS my business, though, is how you're going to pay for this.

Grant hands him a credit card.

Quick cut to:

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EXT. - SERVICE STATION.

Travis is impatiently tapping his hand on the roof of the humvee when Grant arrives.

TRAVIS

Took you long enough, General.

GRANT

Stupid machine wasn't working.

He climbs into the humvee.

GRANT

Let's move out.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The convoy starts moving.

Fade to:

EXT. - ROAD. DAY.

An American is driving the truck hauling the Gundam; Jasmine's sitting in the passenger's seat. She's just staring out at the scenery.

DRIVER

So, um...What was life like before this?

JASMINE

I was getting ready to graduate high school and go on to college.

DRIVER

No shit? What were you going to be studying?

JASMINE

Business administration. Right about now I'd be standing on stage, getting my high school diploma.

DRIVER

I'm sorry things didn't work out for you. You know, considering -

100

JASMINE

Please, don't bring that up.

DRIVER

Sorry. Look, I know you haven't really talked to a lot of the guys here, but I want you to know that you're not alone in this. Everybody's suffering, some more than others.

He points to the sign indicating that they've just crossed into Minnesota.

DRIVER

We just crossed into Minnesota. Land of One Thousand Lakes.

Jasmine doesn't respond.

DRIVER

Okay, I think I'm just gonna leave you alone.

Cut to:

EXT. - MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA. DAY.

The entire city is completely destroyed - there's debris everywhere, fires are burning, destroyed vehicles and dead bodies - soldier and civilian alike - litter the ground. The convoy slowly drives by, taking it all in.

On: Travis.

He can only stare in shock.

TRAVIS

Oh my God.

GRANT

Travis, stop.

TRAVIS

Sir?

GRANT

Just stop.

Travis brings his humvee to a stop; the rest of the convoy

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follows suit.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Grant steps out of the humvee and takes a few steps forward, observing the devastation.

That's when someone grabs his leg. Grant quickly takes out his sidearm and looks down at that someone - it's a young Israeli soldier; he's covered in dirt and blood and overall looks like total crap.

Grant puts his sidearm away and kneels down next to the Israeli.

GRANT

Hold on, soldier, you're gonna be all right. Someone send me a medic!

TRAVIS

Medic up front!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

A medic carrying a first-aid kit hurries past the other soldiers.

MEDIC

Gang way! Coming through!

The medic skids to a stop next to Grant and the Israeli and opens his first-aid kit.

MEDIC

Hang in there, buddy.

OVER TO: JASMINE -

She can only watch as the medic gets to work.

JASMINE

Mobile Suits did this.

NATHANIEL

Are you sure about that?

102

JASMINE

It's just this feeling I've got.

She glances over to the Gundam, which is still strapped down to the trailer.

JASMINE

We should have been here. We could have been able to help them.

NATHANIEL

Not much we can do about it now, lass. Except hope that soldier survives.

As he speaks, the medic and a few soldiers and civilians load the Israeli into the back of a pickup truck.

NATHANIEL

He's lucky. So far.

JASMINE

Do you think he's the only one who survived?

NATHANIEL

I wouldn't be surprised. I also wouldn't be surprised if he died before we left the city limits.

He starts heading for his humvee.

JASMINE

That poor man. I should have - I should have been here. I could have helped.

She turns to the Gundam again.

JASMINE

You're a monster. That's all you are. You and the other Mobile Suits. YOU'RE GOD DAMN MONSTERS!

GRANT (O. S.)

Back to your vehicles, people! We're moving out!

Jasmine glares at the Gundam for another second before climbing into the truck.

103

Cut to:

INT. - WHITE HOUSE - OVAL OFFICE. EVENING.

President Wilcox is having a Skype conversation with the other heads of state in the UN - Japanese Prime Minister Ichiro Higurashi; Isreali Prime Miniser Elijah Nazar; French President Leslie Baron; British Prime Minister Jeffery Dunhurst; and German Chancellor Karl Vundt.

NAZAR

So your nation's been attacked?

WILCOX

And the attacks are continuing, even as we speak. I can't even begin to guess how many people have died in the past two days.

VUNDT

Herr Wilcox, what about your weapon?

WILCOX

Our prototype Mobile Suit - code named Gundam, after the Gundaniam alloy used to build it - won't be here for another couple of days. It'd be here sooner, if the airfield at Fort Lewis hadn't been destroyed.

BARON

Fort Lewis?

WILCOX

Washington. Pacific Northwest. They're coming by vehicle, and taking the last day and a half into account, they'll be here in about four or five days.

HIGURASHI

But that all depends on how much enemy contact they have.

BARON

Monsieur Higurashi is right.

WILCOX

I know. Trevor Barton, the Secretary of Defense, is keeping me up to date on their progress. So far they've only had minimum contact, not counting the Gundam

104

destroying the Black Tri-Stars outside of Yellowstone.

VUNDT

Zeon's team of ace pilots? Well, that's one less hazard they have to worry about.

WILCOX

That may be true, Karl, but remember, there's still the Red Comet.

NAZAR

Char Aznable. Russia's top ace.

HIGURASHI

Not just Russia's top ace, Nazar-sama. Zeon's top ace.

DUNHURST

Okay, mates, let's back up a minute. Oswald, did you just say that the Gundam destroyed the Black Tri-Stars?

WILCOX

Yes, the Gundam is operational; believe it or not, they found a pilot. Trevor didn't go into detail about the pilot, but all that matters is that they found someone.

DUNHURST

You don't suppose this someone is a Newtype, do you?

WILCOX

Anything's possible, Jeff. I don't know if they've had any encounters with Char, God help them.

Cut to:

EXT. - ROADSIDE. NIGHT.

A couple soldiers and civilians are taking their turns standing guard. Nathaniel and Mackenzie are among the soldiers.

NATHANIEL

Looks like it's going to be quiet tonight, lads.

COLLEGE GUY

Fingers crossed. Don't want a repeat of what happened

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before; God that was wild.

MACKENZIE

No, wild is you on the 40mm.

COLLEGE GUY

Hey, that was fun.

MACKENZIE

You DO realize that this isn't a video game, right?

COLLEGE GUY

Yeah, I get it. This ain't exactly Call of Duty. Call of Duty doesn't have giant fucking robots. Speaking of which, there's a girl piloting that one we got over there?

NATHANIEL

That's not a problem, is it?

COLLEGE GUY

No, no, not at all. I just wasn't expecting a girl to be piloting that thing. Let alone one as hot as her.

NATHANIEL

I'll admit, she's cute. But I don't think you want to bring that up around her.

COLLEGE GUY

How come?

MACKENZIE

Just don't. Trust me, mate.

NATHANIEL

You're thinking about how Sergeant O'Grady clocked you, aren't you, Mack?

Mackenzie starts rubbing his jaw.

MACKENZIE

Hey, that bloody hurt.

OVER TO: JASMINE -

Who's sitting on the Gundam's trailer, looking up at the

106

night sky. Grant joins her.

GRANT

What's on your mind, Jasmine?

JASMINE

How's the Israeli?

GRANT

Medic's stabilized him, at least for now. But if we don't get him to a real hospital, he might not survive the next few days. Fortunately, we're not that far from Chicago - we should be there by mid-day tomorrow.

JASMINE

We should have been there to help them. The unit that soldier belonged to. We could have saved them.

GRANT

We can't help everyone, Jasmine. No matter how much we'd like to try. Trust me, if I could, I'd have been there to help them fight. And before you say anything, I don't mean barking orders from the rear.

JASMINE

I've seen it. You've been fighting alongside us.

GRANT

I can't stand staying in the back. I've got to be up there with my soldiers. Even if I AM the first one to be targeted; I don't care.

JASMINE

The other soldiers really respect you for that, I bet.

GRANT

If they respect you, they'll follow you.

JASMINE

I can tell.

For a moment, neither of them says anything.

JASMINE

General Grant, do you think we're doing the right thing?

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All this fighting, I mean.

GRANT

Who can say? I know there are people on both sides who think what they're doing is justified.

JASMINE

There's nothing justified in murdering innocent people.

GRANT

No argument there. Both sides have people who want the war to end as soon as possible, and people who want the war to continue until one side has been completely destroyed. I hope the war ends soon, but even I know that the end of the war won't mean the end of the fighting. A few months ago I heard someone say that the end of the war could bring total pacifism to the world, but that's just a pipe dream. I don't want to sound like a warmonger, Jasmine, but as a species, human beings will always fight. But the question is, will the fighting result in death? When I went through OCS, I was told that the most successful battles were the ones that killed the soldiers under your command, but I don't believe that - battles that cost human lives are miscalculations. I pity the soldiers who get killed off. Trust me, I've shed my share of tears for the soldiers who died under my command.

JASMINE

I can believe it.

GRANT

And that was before Mobile Suits entered the scene. Back when the War on Terror began, if anyone were to talk about Mobile Suits, then someone would tell them that they'd been watching too much Star Trek. Giant robotic vehicles used to be a thing of fantasy.

JASMINE

This is no fantasy. This is no dream.

GRANT

As much as we'd like to think it is.

He looks at his watch.

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GRANT

2300. Better get a few hours' rest while we can, Jasmine, because we're wheels up at 0530. I'll see you in the morning.

Cut to:

EXT. - CHICAGO - STREET. DAY.

The city looks completely untouched. People are giving the convoy wary glances as it rolls down the street. Some of the people can't help but look at the Gundam - which is once again covered by a tarp.

On: Jasmine.

She can't help but stare at the people staring at them.

JASMINE

Why are they all staring at us?

MACKENZIE

It's like they've never seen an Irishman before. Then again, they're probably wondering what's under the tarp.

JASMINE

I'm honestly surprised this city hasn't been touched.

MACKENZIE

Wonder how long that's going to last?

IN GENERAL GRANT'S TRUCK:

Travis is driving. He and Grant are just looking out at the city.

TRAVIS

It's almost like the war doesn't exist in this city.

GRANT

So far.

His radio beeps.

STURMGEIST (V. O.)

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(through the radio)

NATO forces, come in, over.

Grant takes the radio receiver and presses the button to speak into it.

GRANT

This is General Sherman Grant from Fort Lewis. Identify yourself, over.

STURMGEIST (V. O.)

(through the radio)

Colonel Klaus von Sturmgeist. General Grant, you are to proceed to O'Hare International Airport to meet with Admiral Chester Halberton, over.

GRANT

Roger that, Colonel. We will proceed to O'Hare International ASAP. Out.

He puts the radio down.

GRANT

You heard that, right?

TRAVIS

Yes sir. Only question is, where the hell is the airport?

GRANT

Just follow the signs.

TRAVIS

Oh. Right. I can be such a dumbass sometimes.

Cut to:

EXT. - O'HARE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. DAY.

The airport is bustling with activity - planes taking off and landing, luggage trucks hauling their loads, trucks leading the planes onto the runway, etc.

A police cruiser leads the convoy to the hangars. The cruiser comes to a stop; the convoy stops a second later, and everyone gets out of their vehicles. They take a

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second to stretch - they've been riding in the vehicles for a long time.

NATHANIEL

Oh, bollocks, I can't feel my legs.

HUNTER

I hear you, buddy. Makes me miss my turkey blind.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

A German officer - Colonel Klaus von Sturmgeist - makes his way over to General Grant. He quickly salutes; Grant returns the salute.

STURMGEIST

General Grant?

GRANT

I take it you're Colonel Sturmgeist.

STURMGEIST

Yes sir. Admiral Halberton is waiting to speak with you. And the Gundam pilot.

Grant looks over to Jasmine, who - like everyone else - is stretching after being off her feet for so long.

GRANT

I can only imagine what he has to say about her.

(to Sturmgeist)

Give me a minute.

STURMGEIST

Herr Grant, the admiral's getting impatient. I don't think he can wait another minute.

GRANT

Well that's just too damn bad.

He heads over to Jasmine.

GRANT

Hey.

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JASMINE

This place hasn't even seen the fighting.

GRANT

You can tell me about it later, Jasmine. Admiral Halberton wants to see us.

JASMINE

Who?

GRANT

He's the American head of the NATO Mobile Suit project. That's all I can tell you right now, we have to go see him.

JASMINE

Okay, fine.

Cut to:

INT. - ADMIRAL HALBERTON'S OFFICE. DAY.

Admiral Chester Halberton is an older man, a little older than General Grant - who's sitting across the desk from Halberton, along with Jasmine - but he has more of a fierce demeanor about him. And judging by the scowl on his face, he's not too happy.

HALBERTON

Just what the hell do you think you're trying to pull here, General, letting a civilian pilot the RX-78?

GRANT

Admiral, I already told you - she happened upon it by accident, but if she hadn't, then none of us would be here right now.

HALBERTON

Whether you would be here because of her or not is immaterial, Sherman. The fact is, a civilian with no security clearance even caught a glimpse of the Gundam. What if that Mobile Suit had been destroyed before you arrived? That's a $725,000,000 piece of machinery you're hauling around out there.

GRANT

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Jasmine protected us in the Gundam. She SAVED us in the Gundam. I'll agree that we probably could have waited until we found someone, but Zeon didn't give us the chance. Besides, Jasmine's a Newtype; she's more than capable of piloting the Gundam.

Halberton turns his attention to Jasmine, who's been quiet this whole time.

HALBERTON

You're...one of them? One of those...FREAKS?

JASMINE

Freaks? For all we know, Admiral, you could be a Newtype, too.

HALBERTON

Bullshit. Nobody working at this airport has that active gene.

JASMINE

That gene is part of who I am, Admiral. I'm starting to realize that, after what Char said.

HALBERTON

You've spoken to the Red Comet?

JASMINE

I fought him and his Mobile Suit, whatever it was called.

GRANT

The Sazabi.

JASMINE

Right. That.

HALBERTON

And you survived?

JASMINE

He...He let me live. He just said he wanted to test my piloting skills.

GRANT

And she's just gotten better with every battle. I'd like

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to see an ace claim to have destroyed the Black Tri-Stars.

HALBERTON

General, she may have piloted the Gundam until now, and she may be in military uniform, but a civilian is a civilian. There are no two ways around it. She has no place in the Gundam's cockpit.

Hearing this, Jasmine SNAPS - she stands up from the chair she's sitting in and SLAMS her hands down on Halberton's desk.

JASMINE

_I_ have no right piloting the Gundam? You're one to talk, sitting here safe behind your mahogany desk while I'm out there fighting and killing to stop people from dying.

GRANT

Jasmine -

But Jasmine's not finished; in fact, she's just getting started.

JASMINE

I've seen my entire world fall apart around me, I watched my mother and father die right in front of me, I don't know if my friends Fran and Keith are alive, but at least with the Gundam I've stopped more people from dying - at the expense of other human life. You're sitting here, safe in your little office, while I'm out there, piloting that metallic monstrosity, and all the while, people are dying. But you don't care, do you? Citizens, soldiers - they're all numbers to you, aren't they? That's what this is, a big numbers game. Well, here are some numbers for you, Admiral - one million. That's how many people are probably dead by now. But the Gundam - the Gundam can stop all that. I can stop all that, I can stop people from dying. I'll be out there, fighting to protect what's important to me, which is a lot more than I can say about you. To cut the twistedness from this world, to bring an end to the pain and suffering - that's why Gundam and I will fight!

She turns to leave the room.

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ADMIRAL

I didn't dismiss you yet.

JASMINE

I'm not one of your blindly loyal soldiers, Admiral. I don't have to follow your orders.

Grant stands up and joins Jasmine.

GRANT

I think that speaks for both of us. Now, if you'll excuse me, Admiral, I have to tend to my soldiers.

He and Jasmine head to the door, but Admiral Halberton stops them.

HALBERTON

Miss Pryce.

Jasmine turns to face him; for the first time, she doesn't look scared or sad - instead, she looks angry.

JASMINE

What?

HALBERTON

With respect, Miss Pryce, I appreciate everything you've done so far - bringing the Gundam and everyone safely this far. But you're no hero, you're a delivery girl.

GRANT

She's more of a hero than you will ever be.

He puts an arm around Jasmine's shoulders and leads her out of the room.

Quick cut to:

INT. - HANGAR - MAIN AREA. DAY.

Grant and Jasmine walk under the wings of a jet liner. Grant stops and looks back at Jasmine.

GRANT

That took guts, kid.

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JASMINE

Well, he made me mad.

GRANT

Halberton has a habit of making people angry. Don't get me wrong, he means well, it's just - he just doesn't know how to deal with people in your situation.

JASMINE

What do you mean, my situation?

GRANT

People who have lost everything. He went to West Point right out of high school, so he has everything. It's all been handed to him on a platter.

JASMINE

I'd like to trade places with him. Just to see the look on his face.

They exit the hangar as they talk. Jasmine stops, and stretches.

And then she hears something.

KEITH (O. S.)

(whistles)

Jasmine looks around for the source of the whistle, then spots Fran and Keith standing near a parked airplane. Both are waving at Jasmine.

KEITH

Yo! Jazz!

Back on: Jasmine.

She just stares at them for a moment, before running over to them. The three friends throw their arms around each other in a tearful embrace.

Cut to:

INT. - HOTEL ROOM. NIGHT.

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Jasmine's laying down on one of the beds in the room. She sits up and stretches, before looking over to Fran and Keith, who are sitting on the other bed in the room.

JASMINE

I spent so long, not knowing if you guys were alive or not.

FRAN

How do you think we felt?

KEITH

Here we are, running through the city, looking for you, and not finding you.

FRAN

I told him we should have just kept looking.

KEITH

Hey, if them Spics weren't around -

JASMINE

You didn't see any Mobile Suits, did you?

KEITH

Those giant robots? No, I don't think so.

JASMINE

Good. Because for the past few days, I've seen nothing BUT Mobile Suits. Zakus, Goufs, Doms, the Sazabi, and of the course the Gundam.

FRAN

Gundam? What's that?

KEITH

I don't know, but it sounds tough. By the way, Jasmine - when did you join the Army?

JASMINE

I haven't. Legally.

KEITH

So your forged your way in?

JASMINE

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I really didn't have any choice. After I met Travis and we escaped those Mobile Suits -

FRAN

Travis?

JASMINE

Sergeant Travis O'Grady. Met him in Seattle, we made our way to Fort Lewis, and that's where I -

She stops talking for a minute.

JASMINE

I don't even know if I'm allowed to tell you guys about it.

KEITH

About what?

Jasmine thinks about it for a moment.

JASMINE

Ah, what the hell, I don't think it will hurt anything. Come on, I'll show you.

Cut to:

INT. - HANGAR - MAIN AREA. NIGHT.

Jasmine, Fran, and Keith are all looking up at the Gundam - it looks like it's just been polished; the scratches and burn marks are all gone.

FRAN

Wow.

KEITH

Fucking awesome. And you have been riding in this thing?

JASMINE

Well, not to sound conceited, but let's just say that I'm the only one who can. Being a Newtype and all.

KEITH

The fuck is a Newtype?

118

JASMINE

Hard to explain. All you need to know is, everyone's depending on me. Me and the Gundam.

FRAN

You're like some big hero or something.

JASMINE

I don't feel like a hero. You guys, I have killed people. Travis told me that I'd get used to it the more I did it, but every time I kill someone, I feel sick. Even just thinking about the people I've slain, it makes me want to throw up. I want to stop more people from dying, but in order to do that, I have to partake in the killing. How the hell does that solve anything?

KEITH

Yeah, I can see how that can be a little difficult to swallow.

JASMINE

But there's one thing that's been bugging me - why did you guys come out to Chicago?

KEITH

Fran's idea. Her grandparents live out here.

(to Fran)

It IS your grandparents, right?

FRAN

Yeah. Haven't been able to see them, though - the army told us to stay here in case of Zeon attack.

JASMINE

Not that I don't want you to see your grandparents, Fran, but I think staying here's a good idea. There could be Zeon soldiers in Chicago right now doing a reconnaissance mission and we wouldn't even know it. But as long as they don't have any Mobile Suits - Oh, you know what, who am I trying to fool? Of course they will.

KEITH

Why's everyone getting so worked up about a bunch of robots, anyway?

119

JASMINE

First off, Keith, they're not robots - they're vehicles. And second - yeah, the Gundam's supposed to evoke a sense of hope in people, but if the first Suit you see is a Zaku, well...Travis and I are damn lucky to have survived. They told me that one Zaku can destroy an entire military base, and we survived an attack by a squad of seven.

KEITH

Wow.

JASMINE

Yeah. Believe me, I've never been more terrified than in that one moment.

KEITH

At least it's over. Too bad.

JASMINE

You want to repeat that? What the hell do you mean by "too bad"?

KEITH

Well, think about it – you've been on an adventure that the rest of us can only dream about.

FRAN

Don't you think you're taking this a bit too lightly, Keith?

JASMINE

She's right. This is no adventure, Keith. People are dying out there, every second. Our friends, our families, everyone we've ever known is dead. Hasn't your brain processed that yet?

She start to walk away.

KEITH

Jasmine, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that.

JASMINE

You probably wouldn't be saying things like that if you were the one piloting that...That beast. You've never killed anyone; I have. I think about the people I've killed all the time – they've had people back home waiting for them, wondering if they would come back alive or in a

120

body bag. But now, thanks to me, some of them won't be going back at all.

She leaves the two alone in the hangar.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Fran SMACKS Keith on the back of the head.

KEITH

Ow!

FRAN

You can be such a jerk sometimes.

KEITH

Hey, I already apologized. What more do you want from me?

Cut to:

INT. – HOTEL ROOM. NIGHT.

Jasmine's sitting at the foot of the bed, just looking at the floor. After a few seconds, she looks over to the window. She stands up and makes her way over to the window, looking at the nearby airport. From here we can see the hangar the Gundam is in; the lights are on in the hangar, illuminating the Mobile Suit.

Jasmine rests her forehead against the window.

JASMINE

I don't even know if I meant what I said in there. Do I really want to keep piloting that thing for the rest of the war? I've barely managed a week; any longer and I think I might totally snap.

There's a knock at the door, startling her.

JASMINE

Who is it?

TRAVIS (O. S)

(through the door)

Relax, Jasmine, it's just me.

121

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Jasmine heads over to the door and opens it; Travis is standing on the other side.

TRAVIS

What's up, kid?

JASMINE

Oh. Hi, Travis.

TRAVIS

Can I come in?

JASMINE

Oh, um, yeah.

She steps aside, letting Travis come into the room. He leans against the windowsill as Jasmine sits on the bed.

JASMINE

What do you want, Travis?

TRAVIS

I just wanted to check up on you. Heard about the ass-chewing you gave Admiral Halberton. Gotta say, I'm impressed – didn't think you had it in you.

JASMINE

That can't be all you wanted to say to me.

TRAVIS

Who was that you were talking to earlier? Friends?

JASMINE

Yeah. Their names are Fran and Keith. Travis, you don't know how relieved I am to have seen them alive. All this time, I thought they might be dead, and then – there they are, alive and well. I've never been so happy.

TRAVIS

I can believe it. What I can't believe is that we made it this far in one piece. I guess we have you to thank for that.

122

JASMINE

At what cost?

TRAVIS

Hey, don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only one who regrets seeing those people die.

JASMINE

You told me I'd get used to it the more I did it, but I haven't. Travis, I don't want to do this anymore – I don't want any more part of this god damn war.

TRAVIS

None of us do, Jasmine. Trust me, if I had my way, the war would end right now. But as it stands, we've still got a long way to go. It's already been about two years since Zeon was formed, and one year since they declared war on the United Nations. The war could go on for another two days, or it could go on for another two decades. Face it, Jasmine, the only way to end the fighting is to continue to fight.

JASMINE

How, exactly, is that supposed to solve anything?

Travis shrugs his shoulders.

TRAVIS

Hell if I know. It's a crazy cycle.

JASMINE

What cycle?

TRAVIS

Something General Grant told me a long time ago, when I first came to his unit. Whether we like it or not, humanity is a species that lives to fight. Sure, there will be times where we won't fight, but times like that don't last long.

He sits on the bed next to Jasmine.

TRAVIS

When a war ends, it leads to a time of peace. But that time of peace can only last for so long before someone

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rises up as a "revolutionary". This revolutionary will start a conflict, that may eventually boil over into a full-fledged war, and it just continues to repeat. General Grant came up with a name for this cycle – he called it the endless waltz. The three beats of war, peace, and revolution constantly repeat themselves.

JASMINE

And that's supposed to make me feel better?

TRAVIS

No, I guess not.

He puts a hand on Jasmine's shoulder.

TRAVIS

Well, I guess I'll leave you alone for the night. General Grant wants us to be out of here before noon tomorrow.

JASMINE

Surprised it's not six.

TRAVIS

Same here, kid. Well, see you in the morning.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

He stands up and starts heading for the door, but Jasmine stops him.

JASMINE

Travis, one more thing.

TRAVIS

Yeah?

JASMINE

Stop calling me kid.

TRAVIS

(chuckles)

Yeah, I guess everything that you've been through, you're not much of a kid anymore. Well, I'll see you tomorrow.

He leaves the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving Jasmine alone again.

124

Back on: Jasmine.

She lays down on the bed and instantly falls asleep.

Cut to:

EXT. – CHICAGO OUTSKIRTS. NIGHT.

Char is sitting in the Sazabi's open cockpit, looking at the city in the distance.

CHAR

The pilot of that White Devil is in that city, somewhere. I can feel it.

He puts his hands on the control sticks.

CHAR

This time, Jasmine Pryce, it will be different. It will not be a test of strength; rather, one of us will not be walking away, and I will be damned if I'm the one who falls.

He looks at his watch; it's near midnight.

CHAR

Midnight. The attack will begin at 0700. And this time, I fight to kill.

Cut to:

EXT. – CHICAGO – O'HARE AIRPORT. EARLY MORNING.

The airport is busy once again. As the airport is going about its daily routine, some soldiers are giving their vehicles a quick check up – checking the oil, filling the gas tanks, etc.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

One of the plane guides spots something in the distance as a plane takes off.

GUIDE

What is –

125

The plane that took off EXPLODES as it's hit by the massive round of a Zaku's rifle.

GUIDE

Son of a bitch!

He watches as a squad of Mobile Suits – some Zakus and a few Goufs – approach the runways.

GUIDE

Oh shit oh shit oh SHIT!

He turns to run away, only to get stepped on by a Gouf.

Cut to:

INT. – HOTEL ROOM. MORNING.

Jasmine's asleep on the bed when an explosion goes off nearby, waking her up with a start.

JASMINE

The enemy?

ANOTHER ANGLE.

She hurries over to the window and looks outside; several planes are burning, and the soldiers are trying to fight the Zeon Mobile Suits with no success.

Back on: Jasmine.

She tightens her fist.

JASMINE

No. I won't let it happen again.

She hurries out of the room.

Cut to:

INT. – HALBERTON'S OFFICE. MORNING.

Admiral Halberton dives below his desk as the building is rocked by an explosion. A soldier's voice comes over the

126

radio.

SOLDIER (V. O.)

(through the radio)

Admiral, what do we do?

Halberton grabs the radio and speaks into it.

HALBERTON

Engage the enemy! Drive them back!

Cut to:

INT. – HANGAR. MORNING.

Jasmine avoids an explosion as she hurries over to the Gundam.

JASMINE

Hold on, guys, I'm coming!

Quick cut to:

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine straps herself into the pilot's seat and presses the activation button.

Cut to:

EXT. – CHICAGO. MORNING.

The battle's taking place in the city as well. Some soldiers are trying to fight off the Zakus and the Goufs, with little success. One humvee is destroyed by a blast from a Gouf.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Another soldier is on the roof of a nearby building; he's armed with a rocket launcher. He aims at the Gouf and fires the rocket.

The Gouf turns around, activating its heat rod – a long, segmented whip radiating with heat – and knocks the rocket

127

out of the air, before firing at the building's roof, destroying it and killing the soldier.

The Sazabi lands in the middle of the fray and FIRES its wing mounted missiles. The missiles slam into the road and the buildings.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

This should drive out that pilot.

He sees something on the view screen; it's Fran and Keith, running away as fast as they can.

Back on: Char.

He moves the control sticks.

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Sazabi aims its rifle at Fran and Keith and pulls the trigger.

Cut to:

EXT. – CHICAGO – O'HARE AIRPORT.

The Gundam SMASHES through the wall of the hangar, a beam saber in one hand, its rifle in the other. As soon as it clears the building, it SLICES a Zaku in half, then BLASTS a Gouf in the chest, before THROWING its beam saber. The plasma blade sticks in a Zaku's head, before the Gundam flips out its arm blade and SLICES the Zaku's chest open.

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Who's next, assholes?

EXT. – AIRPORT.

The Gundam quickly turns around, smacking a Gouf in the head and knocking it to the ground. The Gouf tries to stand up, but the Gundam plants a foot on the Gouf's chest,

128

then FIRES at it with its rifle.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam hurries away from the fallen Gouf and onto the runway. As it goes, it slings its rifle over its back and takes out its spare beam saber. Two Zakus rush to meet the Gundam, but they're quickly taken out by the Gundam's beam saber and head-mounted machine guns.

Cut to:

EXT. – CHICAGO – STREET. MORNING.

The Zeon Mobile Suits are still facing off against the soldiers. Travis ducks down to avoid the shrapnel from an explosion.

TRAVIS

These things just won't fucking die!

He spots the Sazabi walking down the street.

TRAVIS

Oh shit. The Red Comet!

Back on: The Sazabi.

It starts scanning the city, which is now in a state of panic and ruin thanks to the Mobile Suits – people are lying dead in the streets, some people are trying to run away and subsequently getting blasted by the Mobile Suits - the massive rounds from the Suits' rifles obliterate the people; buildings are burning and falling apart; the road is totally blasted and covered in rubble, etc.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam comes CHARGING into the city, taking down any Zaku or Gouf unfortunate enough to be in its way.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

A wicked smile crosses Char's face.

129

CHAR

There you are, White Devil of the United Nations!

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Sazabi takes out one of its own beam sabers and CHARGES for the Gundam. The two Mobile Suits cross weapons.

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Char!

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

White Devil!

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Gundam steps back from the Sazabi and SLASHES at it; the red Mobile Suit leaps back, before taking to the air. It lands on the roof of a nearby building.

Back on: The Gundam.

It gives chase, leaping up to the roof of the building – supported by the jet boosters on its back – and starts attacking. The Sazabi ducks down out of the way of the Gundam's beam saber, then knocks the Gundam's feet out from under it. The Gundam tumbles off the roof and SLAMS into the road below, crushing a humvee and a few civilian vehicles beneath it.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Sazabi lands nearby and gets ready to impale the Gundam with its beam saber. The Gundam quickly rolls out of the way, before climbing to its feet and FIRING its machine guns. The bullets hit the Sazabi, but do little damage.

The two Mobile Suits raise their rifles and aim at each other. But other than that, they do nothing.

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

130

Jasmine just stares at the Sazabi.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

Char just stares at the Gundam.

CHAR

One of us is going to have to make a move sooner or later.

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Well feel free.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

CHAR

How many more people's lives have to become forfeit before this war comes to an end?

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Gundam gets ready to squeeze the trigger.

JASMINE (V. O.)

(through the radio)

Just one.

The Gundam FIRES. The round hits the Sazabi square in the chest.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

Char winces from the shockwave.

CHAR

Okay.

He moves the control sticks.

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Sazabi fires the few wing missiles it has left. The Gundam dodges each one, then comes CHARGING at the Sazabi. It THROWS its beam saber. The Sazabi steps to the side;

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the beam saber goes harmlessly past the red Mobile Suit.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam takes the two knives out of the holsters on its shoulders and LEAPS at the Sazabi. The Sazabi SLASHES at the Gundam with its beam saber; the Gundam blocks with one knife, and jams the other knife into the Sazabi's head. The Sazabi steps back, before swinging its beam saber at the Gundam again.

This time, the Gundam GRABS the Sazabi's arm and WRENCHES the beam saber from its hands. As soon as the beam saber is in the Gundam's possession, it SLASHES at the Sazabi, taking off its head. Another slash takes off an arm.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

Char winces.

CHAR

Why don't you just go ahead and finish me off?

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

JASMINE

Okay, I –

She spots something on the view screen. A closer look shows what's left of Fran and Keith.

JASMINE

No. Fran? Keith?

She tightens her grip on the control sticks; she's PISSED.

JASMINE

You killed my friends. I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THAT!

She presses her foot down on the pedals.

EXT. – CHICAGO.

The Gundam comes CHARGING at the Sazabi. The Sazabi tries to get out of the way, but the Gundam takes off the other arm. The Sazabi tries to fire its wing missiles, but it

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doesn't have any left, so it starts to take to the air. The Gundam grabs the Sazabi's leg and spins it around before letting it go; the Sazabi SLAMS into the side of a building. It tries to get up, but the Gundam stabs it in the top of the torso, just missing the cockpit area.

ANOTHER ANGLE.

The Gundam steps back from the Sazabi, FIRING its machine guns as it does. When it's close enough, it leans down and picks up the Sazabi's rifle, then aims it at the Sazabi and FIRES. Once, twice, several times, until the rifle is empty.

INT. – SAZABI COCKPIT.

The control console is sparking and popping; it's going to explode any second.

CHAR

Not bad. You've gotten better.

He unstraps himself from the pilot's seat and presses a button, opening the cockpit.

EXT. – CHICAGO.

Char quickly climbs out of the Sazabi, dropping to the ground and running away from the red Mobile Suit –

Just as the Sazabi's chest EXPLODES!

ANOTHER ANGLE.

Some soldiers are slowly making their way over to what's left of the Sazabi; they've all got their weapons trained on it, just to be safe. Travis and Grant are among the soldiers.

On: Travis.

He looks up at the Gundam.

TRAVIS

Jasmine! Are you okay in there?

133

INT. – GUNDAM COCKPIT.

Jasmine doesn't answer; she's just sitting in the pilot's seat, her shoulders sagged, her hands lightly resting on the control sticks. Once again, she's crying, but they're not tears of sorrow – rather, they're tears of anger.

JASMINE

Why – ? What – WHAT ARE WE FIGHTING FOR?!

EXT. – CHICAGO.

We get one last view of the smoking city before we:

Fade out.

Roll credits.

**THE END**

**GUNDAM**

**ORIGINAL STORY BY: Yoshiyuki Tomino**

**SCREEN STORY BY: Kenny Rutter and Chris Brenneman**

**SCREENPLAY BY: Kenny Rutter**

**DIRECTOR: Michael Bay**

**MUSIC BY: Hans Zimmer**

**CAST:**

**JASMINE PRYCE: Emma Stone**

**GENERAL SHERMAN GRANT: Keifer Sutherland**

**SERGEANT TRAVIS O'GRADY: Mark Wahlberg OR Johnny Knoxville**

**CORPORAL NATHANIEL GREENE: TBA**

**PRIVATE MACKENZIE O'SHEA: TBA**

**LIEUTENANT SUGUROKU NADAKI: TBA**

**COLONEL KLAUS VON STURMGEIST: TBA**

**ADMIRAL CHESTER HALBERTON: Keith David**

**ISRAELI SOLDIERS: TBA**

134

**AMERICAN SOLDIERS: TBA**

**MEDICS: TBA**

**ISRAELI SOLDIER: TBA**

**FRAN: TBA**

**KEITH: TBA**

**JASMINE'S MOM: TBA**

**PRESIDENT OSWALD WILCOX: TBA**

**SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TREVOR BARTON: TBA**

**PRESIDENTIAL SECRETARY ROBERT BECKEL: TBA**

**WILLIS DRAKE: TBA**

**NOAH HATHAWAY: TBA**

**SECRET SERVICE AGENTS: TBA**

**TED: TBA**

**NEWS REPORTERS: TBA**

**TELEMARKETER: TBA**

**PRIME MINISTER ICHIRO HIGURASHI: TBA**

**PRIME MINISTER ELIJAH NAZAR: TBA**

**PRESIDENT LESLIE BARON: TBA**

**CHANCELLOR KARL VUNDT: TBA**

**PRIME MINISTER JEFFERY DUNHURST: TBA**

**HUNTERS: TBA**

**COLLEGE GUYS: TBA**

**RUSSIAN SOLDIERS: TBA**

**CUBAN SOLDIER: TBA**

**COMMANDER DMITRI SMIRNOF: TBA**

**CORPORAL CHANG WUFEI: TBA**

**CORPORAL RAMON SALAZAR: TBA**

**SERGEANT RAOUL MARON: TBA**

**CHAR AZNABLE: TBA**

**CAPTAIN OZAI QIN: TBA**

**CAPTAIN JORGE CHAVES: TBA**

**CAPTAIN KI-LAN YEOH: TBA**

**AIRPLANE GUIDE: TBA**

**SOUNDTRACK:**

**INSER SONG(S):**

"**Citizen/Soldier" by 3 Doors Down**

**CREDIT SONGS:**

**"What I've Done" by Linkin Park**

"**Step Up" by Drowning Pool**

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"**Connected" by Hoobastank**

"**Gundam" is rated R for scenes of intense war violence and mayhem, strong language, and some brief nudity.**

**TO BE FOLLOWED BY: "GUNDAM: CHAR'S COUNTERATTACK"**


End file.
